PokeStones of the Dead
by Markino
Summary: Temperance must save Kanto from being overrun by the Dead... but is there a more sinister background to the attack? How are the three legendary birds involved? And will Temperance conquer his frozen emotions with help? COMPLETE! Reviews still appreciated.
1. Prologue

PokeStones of the Dead - Prologue

"Gyarados, Earthquake!"

The Pokemon straightened slightly from its aerial coiled position, before hurtling to the ground at enormous speeds, its long body already a blur. Tail extended, the majestic serpent slammed the ground with its tail, causing shockwaves to emerge from the impact.

Temperance turned away. He had seen too many of these attacks to be impressed or surprised. Sure enough, the sound of the bell a few seconds later signalled the knockout of his opponent's Furret, and the end of the match in his favour.

Stepping onto the podium to collect his prize, Temperance sighed. Few did not cower at the mere sight of his Gyarados, much less conjured up the courage to do a good hit on it. Catching, and keeping faith, in the Magikarp that was his 2nd Pokemon remained as distant memories in Temperance's mind, now devoted to more important things like winning tournaments. Undefeated in 3v3 battle, Temperance had never found the energy or the motivation to catch a few more Pokemon to take on the Elite Four, although he was sure he was at least at their standard by now.

Gyarados was now safely sleeping inside one of 3 Pokeballs tied snugly to his belt. The other two contained a Flygon, his newest addition to the team. Caught on one of his random tours around Hoenn, Temperance had found the Trapinch in a cave. The small and unimpressive creature had been almost ignored, but its Arena Trap forced attention, and Temperance had not regretted making the decision to catch it ever since.

And of course, his very first Pokemon – a Dodrio. Definitely his strongest and most loyal Pokemon, Dodrio had not seen a serious battle for a long while. With almost 4 years of experience under its belt, the Dodrio also acted as an unofficial mentor to Gyarados and Flygon, earning both their respect and their envy. Temperance did not give Dodrio the chance to battle often, but when he did, Dodrio always repaid his confidence.

And those were the only 3 Pokemon he had caught since he had started on his journey from the faraway region of Kanto. He had returned home only thrice since his mission started, to visit his parents. He would be going back again after this tournament, a stopover at a recently-discovered island on the way back to Kanto. The ship he had boarded at Hoenn included a free visit to the island, after all. The island was beautiful, with a magnificent view of the sun setting over the water. Although Temperance did not display any outward signs that he was enjoying this pit stop, it was not because he was unable to appreciate the beauty of this scenery. His name was evidence enough that this young man very rarely made any big show of his emotions.

Boarding the ship that would take him back to Vermillion City in Kanto, Temperance glanced at the assortment of medals and trophies in his pack. All these would be added to his room in his house, located between the cities of Celadon and Fuchsia. One wall of the room was already fully adorned with these signs of his prowess at battling.

The ship made its way towards Vermillion Harbour, still the only harbour in Kanto. There were plans to build another in Cinnabar, which made sense, but the frequent volcanic eruptions there put a stop to the half-finished work. Eventually, a decision was made to shift the work to Seafoam, but it would take at least half a year to finish the job.

And so, the next day went by on the ship. Built for luxury, not speed, the cruiser was filled with facilities. Temperance spent most of his time in his room, venturing out only to eat or to get a drink at the bar. Even then, he just finished his meal and went back. Temperance had always preferred quiet rooms, and was most at home in them. The only exception was of course the Pokemon stadium, where he was too occupied in his battles to notice the crowd that he would shun in most, if not all, other scenarios. Unfortunately, this "hotel on a ship" did not feature a stadium.

A bell rang, signalling the arrival of the ship at Vermillion Harbour. The other passengers started to pack, hastily throwing their belongings into their bags. Temperance's bags were already neatly packed, him having taken careful note of the date and time that the ship would reach Vermillion. Taking his first step into Kanto for a year, Temperance allowed himself a rare display of emotion – a smile. He was going home…

Into chaos.


	2. The Beginning

PokeStones of the Dead - Chapter One

_Where's the PokeStone?_

This wasn't right. Two years ago, fed up with the constant blackouts due to electric Pokemon crossing the wires, or big Pokemon simply crashing into electrical boxes, the Kanto committee (the 8 Gym Leaders) had come to an agreement that, for once, was a good idea. Each Gym Leader would construct a PokeStone at their respective city. The cities of Viridian, Cinnabar, and Celadon would construct smaller PokeStones at Pallet, Seafoam, and Lavender respectively. Imbued with the powers of many hundreds of Pokemon, the PokeStone was sealed with a special power that allowed it to power the city very effectively. Made of a very hard alloy, then coated with earth, the PokeStone was fenced up with titanium, preventing it from damage.

The PokeStone had other advantages too. Besides powering the city, each of the Gym Leaders put a little of their spirit into the stone. Therefore, the Stone acted as some sort of idol for the city, acting as a leader in the event of the Leader's absence. Temperance's parents had sent correspondence to him regarding the event, along with two pictures of the PokeStones at Celadon and Lavender. The PokeStone at Celadon, in the shape of a Jumpluff, was almost three metres tall. The Gengar PokeStone at Lavender was smaller, but supremely made, and very lifelike.

Now…

In the place where the PokeStone should be, there was a hole. The entire PokeStone was gone, fence and all. Not surprisingly, the entire city was totally dark, save for the Pokemon Centre – the only building to have emergency power supplies. Temperance approached the hole where the stone should have been, taking step after step in that direction. Somehow, his feet felt sluggish, and hard to lift, almost as if they were made of lead.

_This isn't right… I should just return to the ship…_

Temperance turned around, and the passengers, on emerging from the vessel, all turned around and pleaded for the ship to take to the seas again. Vermillion City in its current state was in no shape for tourists who wanted to see Kanto. Apparently, Temperance was the only one who was returning to visit relatives or on business – the rest were all here for a holiday. The captain, glancing at the dark and eerie Vermillion, considered for barely ten seconds before ordering the ship to return to Hoenn. The passengers gratefully returned to the ship, not noticing the lone boy standing at the pier, only thinking of their safe beds on the ship - and the entertainment on board.

Temperance shook his head in exasperation. Returning to Hoenn was not an option in any case – he never backed down from this sort of danger anyway. Afraid of the dark – why was he acting like a six-year-old all of a sudden? He decided but to investigate the hole further. Resuming his walk to the ex-PokeStone, Temperance was suddenly aware of a clammy coldness emitting from the hole, causing nausea and buzzing in his ears. He felt really uncomfortable, and almost considered turning back, but he had to find out what was it that was making the town so deadly creepy. It seemed like his legs were following a spell, and had to approach that hole. Ignoring the signals from his brain, and the warnings of his sixth sense, his legs slowly moved towards the deathly hole.

Finally, he could see down the hole. Temperance could not see the bottom, the hole was very deep. The buzzing was now much louder, and Temperance was forced to constantly fight the need to throw up. He was vaguely aware of running water in the hole, but Temperance was sure that this was not just a canal, but something far more mysterious and dangerous. And then he felt that he was being watched, again unexplainable. He didn't make unfounded assumptions like this – so why was he so sure of a presence down the hole, observing his actions?

Just as Temperance decided to turn around and go to the Pokemon Centre, looking for information, he heard a noise down the hole. It was a rattling breath, the very sound of which caused Temperance's nerves to go cold. The breath was totally unnatural, very loud, and seemed to penetrate Temperance's body.

_Something is down there breathing, perhaps? But no… such a breath could not belong to any living thing, whether human or Pokemon._

The breaths were coming closer, and Temperance heard the sound of someone… something… moving up the hole. Temperance knew he should run, or send out his Pokemon. Already, he could feel their presence, straining to be released from their Poke Balls in order to fight this unknown enemy. But his legs and arms seemed rooted. Only one emotion was now coursing through his body, one emotion that Temperance had never expected to feel.

It was fear.

A rotting hand appeared at the edge of the hole, its decaying hand visible even in the darkness. There was still a tinge of yellow in its flesh, but most of the hand was brown, and emitting a horrible smell. The nausea was now affecting Temperance worse than ever, as the dead hand of the Ampharos pulled its body up, actions exactly like those seen in cheap and clichéd zombie movies.

_This can't be happening…_

For some reason, Temperance was still struck horrified by the Pokemon. He was still rooted to the ground, in exactly the same position since hearing the sound. The Ampharos was almost out of the hole now, its rotting ears infested with maggots crawling in and out, but still crackling with electricity. The rattling breath hadn't stopped, yet the Ampharos was not making the noise. Was there another zombie Pokemon down that hole? What on earth was going on?

The Ampharos was out of the hole. Electricity passed along its hand, creating a disgusting effect between rotting flesh and static electricity. Moving with a speed that would put most zombies in legend to shame, the Ampharos attacked the still-frozen Temperance with a Thunder Punch. Poke Balls useless at his side, Temperance, mouth open, saw the zombified hand coming at his face.

"Scizor, Silver Wind!"

It was a girl's voice shouting, coming by the silent PokeMart. Wind, fast and deadly, blocked the Ampharos' attack, the entire hand getting cut off by the razor-sharp attack. While the Ampharos did not show any sign of pain or damage, the attack served to shock Temperance out of immobility.

"Go, Flygon!"

Temperance jumped on the Dragon Pokemon as it took to the skies, out of reach from any physical attack from the zombie. Looking at where the voice had come from, Temperance could see a Scizor in the shadows, approaching the Ampharos at high speed.

"Metal Claw!"

The Scizor's metal hand closed on the Ampharos' rotting one, and closed, cutting it clean off. Temperance noticed that the zombie was weak in the sense that it lost limbs and other body parts quite easily – in fact, flesh was dropping from it as it walked – but could withstand such losses far more effectively than normal Pokemon. Even without limbs, the Ampharos' ears glowed with electricity, and shot it at the Scizor, knocking it back. Temperance knew that he had to help.

Ordering his Flygon into a steep dive, Temperance stared into the attacker's hideous face for a second, before Flygon Fire Blasted its face into charcoal. Following up with pummeling rocks onto the stunned zombie, Flygon left a path clear for the helpful Scizor to land the final blow.

Another Silver Wind and the zombie was down for the count, its body too mutilated to stand. Teetering on its crumpled legs, it tried to regain its warped sense of balance, before toppling into the hole from which it came, also stopping the breathing abruptly.

Temperance landed onto the ground, still in shock that he had went to pieces after seeing that zombie. Then again, it was the last thing he had expected coming from that hole, and he was recovering already… after throwing up into the sea.

The girl was walking towards him now, her face unclear in the dark. Returning Flygon to his Poke Ball, Temperance walked over to her, wanting to thank her for her timely intervention, and also to get some much-needed information.

"Young man, what in the name of the PokeStones are you doing here?"

"I arrived on a ship… from Hoenn. It left Slateport a week ago. What's happening?"

"One week… that would be about right. We stopped all coming transport from other regions about six days ago, owing to the… situation… over here in Kanto."

"What situation? I came here to see my parents near Celadon! I'm a Kanto resident; shouldn't I deserve to know what's going on?"

Showing his Kanto ID to the girl, Temperance was aware of a sudden change in her aggressive tone. Shrinking slightly, the girl made the dreaded statement:

"I'm Lillette… defending people from these zombies. Celadon to Fuchsia was taken by the Dead 3 days ago. There is nothing there now but death."

Temperance sunk to his knees. The city his parents were living… taken by hordes of those zombies that he had just fought? Dismembered, their very souls ripped out by the zombies… then turned into one of them, mindlessly marching, and indiscriminately attacking everyone in sight? Why?

"Lillette… How? Why?"

"Some PokeStones cracked and fell into a hole much like this six days ago. Huge amounts of Dead crawled out of these holes, and attacked en masse Vermillion, Celadon and Fuchsia. It took everybody by surprise, and there was no time to even make plans for a resistance. After some premature fighting, all residents of Celadon and Fuchsia were ordered to evacuate to neighbouring cities, but surrounded, few survived. As for Vermillion, a resistance party was organised, and we successfully quelled the flow of the Dead from this hellhole and retook the city… but as you can see, stray Dead still appear, and the city is totally unpowered."

"Any better news?" Temperance asked, trying to regain his composure. The news was no doubt shocking, and the last thing he had expected to hear. While he never really showed his parents a lot of love, they still played a major role in his heart – albeit locked up only for him to know. Now, he started to regret showing no active emotion to convey his love.

"Some. Apart from the retaking of Vermillion, I am glad to say that not all the PokeStones were taken. Pallet, Viridian, Pewter, Cerulean, Cinnabar and Seafoam still remain untainted, and we are still holding out at Lavender and Saffron. There is still hope yet."

"But surely…! The Elite Four, and Gym Leaders, can't they quell this… uprising, in a snap? Their Pokemon are the strongest!"

Lillette brushed this aside with a simple snap of her fingers. The sorry tone and facial expression were gone, replaced with the preliminary exasperated look.

"Oh please! Can you get a brain? Did you think these PokeStones – artefacts of immense power – could be simply destroyed through brute force? There is an ancient binding here. The PokeStones can only be broken through the slaying of a Pokemon, its blood staining the stone. And not just any Pokemon - it has to be from a Gym Leader."

Temperance gasped. These zombies had somehow managed to get hold of a Gym Leader's Pokemon? That means… the Gym Leaders…

Lillette glanced at his face and saw the question in there. "Yes, the Lieutenant, Erika, and Koga were slain on the halls of their Gym. There is news that Janine managed to escape the clutches of the zombies, and is co-leading the defence at Saffron, but it is little comfort. The largest host of Dead lie just outside Victory Road, preventing even the Elite Four from getting past. Similarly, the Gym Leaders have no way to coordinate and work together for a combined attack. Even the skies are not safe – zombified Flying Pokemon scour the skies and will pick out humans."

Temperance got up, composure regained. The death of his parents was one thing that broke his icy exterior, and made him feel some genuine grief. Of course, the sadness would still be there. However, he was not one to stay in mourning instead of taking active action against the problem. There was no time to despair. He knew he had a duty to help Kanto fight this problem – also as a form of revenge for his dead parents. His three Pokemon may have yet some serious fighting to do. "Let me help. I can help."


	3. Battle of Lavender

PokeStones of the Dead - Chapter Two

Staring at the conflicting emotions on Lillette's face, Temperance was aware that she thought lightly of him, and was loathe letting a person frozen for 3 whole minutes by ONE zombie take part in this battle. On the other hand, she knew that he was quite experienced in battle, and she needed all the help she could get – manpower was short, and there were more Dead than living Pokemon in some areas.

_This young man wants to help, and my head says yes, but my heart says that he cannot be trusted. What do you think?_

Staring at her 4 Poke Balls, Lillette tapped each one of them in turn, mouthing their names. _Scizor. Misdreavus. Lapras. Xatu._

Temperance waited.

"Ok, you can join. Do away with all you can spare and go with as much haste as you can muster to Lavender. They have great need."

Temperance carried few things that held emotional or spiritual importance in his pack. Most were things of physical necessity, like foodstuffs, clothing, and shelter. Even then, many things were jettisoned into a corner at Vermillion Harbour, he hoping beyond hope to get them back after all these was over. Amongst these items were his medals and trophies won. They were useless to him now, and he never really felt any affection for them anyway. However, one thing that Temperance had been only too eager to stow away now came into prominence – his parents' last gift to him a year ago. The ring, entrusted to him on his sixteenth birthday, was now worn on Temperance's hand. He had refused to wear the ring on the grounds that it served no practical purpose, except to make people think he was an emotional wellspring. Now, the ring held special importance.

Lillette was impatiently waiting for him to get ready, making several gestures and sounds of discontent, even though Temperance had barely took ten minutes to get everything in order. Finally, everything was fit into one pack, and Temperance set off with Lillette to Lavender Town. Lillette explained as the duo ran to the smaller city.

"Surrounded on both sides by Celadon and Fuchsia, Lavender's only escape route lies toward Vermillion, with the Rock Tunnel caved in and Route 8 occupied with the Dead. Yet we cannot so lightly abandon the radio tower as well as the cemetery. If this PokeStone breaks, hundreds more Dead will rise from the cemetery, and we will be unable to correspond with other cities via radio. We must protect it at all costs."

"What is the status of the defence at present? Lavender doesn't have a Gym Leader, and both neighbouring Gym Leaders are slain. How can they hold on to this point?"

"The Fighting Dojo master escaped thither with his Pokemon, and Sabrina lent him some of her psychic Pokemon. Even as we speak, some of them are clearing the Rock Tunnel, while the rest are engaged in desperate defence against the Dead. If we can clear the Rock Tunnel, innocents will have a chance to escape to Cerulean. If we can force the attackers to retreat, Sabrina's and Janine's forces from Saffron and the surviving forces from Lavender can surround them at Route 8. They will be annihilated."

"Understood."

The two young trainers rushed towards Lavender. Thankfully, the route between Vermillion and Lavender had been previously cleared by the reinforcements from Vermillion who went to help the besieged city. Temperance knew better than to take to the skies. Without cover from the trees and buildings, aerial scouts could easily take note of their presence and set up an ambush. As Lavender grew ever closer, Temperance could not help but thank his physical training at Hoenn, preparing him for a sprint like this. What was more surprising was that the girl was running as fast, if not faster, than him. Then again, she was obviously a soldier of some kind, so it was not that unexpected on closer thought.

As the duo stepped into Lavender, the first sight greeting them was fighting and psychic Pokemon working hand in hand to fend off the insane amounts of Dead. Grass and Poison Pokemon were in abundance, with Koffings and Glooms emitting a fouler smell than they would usually emit. Upon closer observation, all of their bodies were rotting away. Yet it had not affected their ability to battle. The Razor Leafs and Sludge Bombs they used to attack could not be differentiated from that of a living Pokemon.

_So… which one of you was the one who killed my parents?_

Facing such amounts of Dead, Temperance was unfazed. If anything, he was motivated to destroy them all, for what they did to everyone. Feeling the ring around his finger one more time, Temperance released two of his Poke Balls at the same time, just as Lillette beside him did the same. Gyarados and Dodrio, along with Misdreavus and Xatu, joined the defending ranks. The battle had begun.

Temperance stared at the hordes of Dead approaching the city. Even a casual glance showed that they outnumbered the defending forces by at least two to one. Also, for the first time, Temperance noticed that the attackers here showed signs of intelligence lacking from the earlier battle with the Ampharos. Could someone be controlling these hordes from afar? Some necromancer or evil magician? There was no time for pondering further. Lavender only had one captain, the Fighting Dojo Master. Temperance saw Lillette engaging in conversation with him.

"Why so few left, sir? When I left for Vermillion, there were at least equal numbers!"

"News that we should focus on sending civilians to Cerulean as soon as possible, so I sent all Machops and Machokes we have to the Rock Tunnel. Also, enemy Glooms and Jumpluffs have been using various immobilizing powders. Supplies are running low and we have no choice but to sent those afflicted to rest."

Lillette, on hearing the news, immediately turned to Temperance, and without asking, rummaged through his pack, looking for Pokemon supplies, molesting Temperance's personal belongings without a second glance at them.

"What are you doing?"

"Idiot, we're vastly outnumbered. Many are in tents paralysed, sleeping, or suffering from a slow poison that will eventually take them to their doom. Get out your heals!"

Temperance took out his Antidotes and Paralyse Heals, throwing them at Lillette who ran to the tents. Temperance gazed at her running figure, and then turned back at the dead. Far too many for single-target attacks – if they all stuck to beams, their Pokemon would die of old age before the host of Dead were eliminated. There was a need for a move that affected far more than one target.

"Hold on, guys! Dodrio, Whirlwind!"

Dodrio's small wings beat furiously as it cooked up strong winds that were launched at the Dead. Those at the frontline were pushed back, and some were even raised and threw in the middle of the pack, crushing several attackers. However, a Mr. Mime defending was caught in the whirlwind and threw in the midst of the Dead, causing it to become quickly devoured and turned into one of the zombies.

_Shit! What have I done!_

The Mr. Mime's smiling face remained, but it was now a sinister smile. Eyes lidless, blood leaking from every orifice of its body, it was now a grisly manifestation of its usual self. Facing Temperance, the Mr. Mime concentrated, sending a burst of psychic energy that threatened to pull Temperance into the zombies for a speedy end.

"Gyarados, Hyper Beam that Mr. Mime! Hurry!"

Temperance's Gyarados, sensing his master's urgency, sent his most powerful attack towards the Mr. Mime, then slumped back, exhausted. The beam was a perfect shot, decapitating the Mr. Mime. Even zombies could not take a beheading, and the zombie fell, but not before its Psychic hit, throwing Temperance forward.

_No…! I'll die if I land over there…_

"Xatu, Barrier!"

Temperance turned in mid-air to see Lillette emerge from the tents with a company of psychic Pokemon, including an Alakazam, which Temperance noticed with delight. Just as he was about to call out to her for help, he slammed full force into an invisible barrier and slumped to the ground.

_Ouch…_

Temperance grimaced at the pain, but knew that it could have been a lot worse. Picking himself up, he made sure that his ring was still on his finger, then ducked as Xatu shot a Psybeam over the Barrier, carving a path through the Dead. His words of thanks froze on his lips, replaced by an indignant expression. Lillette had not even made sure he was out of the line of fire.

"Cover your ears! Whatever you do, don't listen to it!"

Temperance vaguely recognised Lillette's voice, cursed her for not even waiting for him to stand up and get back to the defence, then covered his ears as Misdreavus unleashed a Perish Song, the song beautiful and very sad at the same time. Even with his ears covered, he could feel the power behind the notes, but did not get the full force of the attack.

As the song stopped, Temperance knew that the song would take some time to take effect, and the Dead could simply retreat beyond a certain area. It would not quell the tides… Walking back to the crowd, he heard the Fighting Dojo Master command a Hypno to use Hypnosis, freezing a few of the Dead in sleep. They would stay there until they died… again… from the Perish Song.

_Everyone is doing something useful except me… I have to get my act together! These people killed my parents. Am I going to just stand here and do nothing?_

Temperance released Flygon, just as Lillette sent out Scizor. He turned to face the attackers with renewed vigour, his weariness after the long run and the pain of the Barrier already forgotten.

_All right, let's show these stupid zombies…_

"Gyarados, Flygon, Earthquake!"

Gyarados and Flygon positioned themselves facing each other, a horde of Dead between them. The Dual Earthquake caused the ground to ripple in waves, all earth's malice directed at the attacking zombies. Tossed like rag dolls, most of the zombies were crushed in the onrushing earthquake, then got swallowed into the bowels of the earth. However, some of the Grass and Poison Pokemon spat out various powders as a defence measure, thus paralysing Gyarados and poisoning Flygon. Visibly weakened, the two Pokemon flew back to Temperance, Flygon wincing every few seconds, while Gyarados seemingly unable to control its movement at times.

"Lillette, are there any heals left?"

"No… They were all used…"

Temperance resisted the urge to give Lillette a piece of his mind, instead focusing on the good points of the battle so far. That dual Earthquake, along with the earlier Perish Song, had cleared many of the Dead, while those remaining had been pushed back. Lillette, while apparently unable to help him cure his Pokemon, was keeping them at bay with Silver Wind and Psychic. Barrier and Light Screen was also preventing them from breaching the town's defences. This brought some cheer from Temperance. Surely, the battle would be over before long, and he could cure his two afflicted Pokemon.

Then he saw the Jumpluffs and Venomoths flying over the Barrier. Appearing to be carrying a zombie Mr. Mime, and a living Weepinbell, the zombies flew over the defences… toward the PokeStone.

_Shit!_ "Gyarados, Hyper Beam! Flygon, Fire Blast!" _So that's what they're doing! That Weepinbell must have been Erika's… and therefore they will slay it and smear its blood on the PokeStone… and then the entire horde of cemetery dwellers will rise to wreak a terrible havoc upon this city… no, all of Kanto, and even beyond!_

Temperance turned. Why weren't his Pokemon doing anything? Then he saw that Gyarados was paralysed, totally unable to move, and Flygon, poisoned, was flying up far too slow. The Jumpluffs sprayed Stun Spores over the entire town, causing not only Flygon, but many of the other defenders, to fall paralysed as well. The Fighting Dojo Master, on the verge of ordering his psychic Pokemon to use Psywave on the flying attackers, fell, mouth still open in command. Although a sitting duck for any zombie who wanted to give him the finishing blow, the zombies had no interest in him. They were heading for the PokeStone.

"Gyarados, Flygon, return! Dodrio, follow me!"

Temperance ran helter-skelter towards the PokeStone, banishing the weariness and pain in his legs. Dodrio, running much faster than her master, took the offensive, charging through the landed Venomoths with a Drill Peck, then turned, using Wing Attack to beat the Venomoths away. Weepinbell, clearly immobilised, was the next to land, carried by two Jumpluffs. The usually feathery and cheerful Pokemon was now horribly disfigured, the feathers now home to various small and fell insects. The flies buzzing around the zombies' heads almost made Temperance throw up again, but he knew that protecting this PokeStone was more important.

"Dodrio, Aerial Ace!"

Dodrio aimed at the two Jumpluffs for a brief moment, and then struck with an unknown force with deadly accuracy. Going above the Weepinbell's head, the projectile hit the two Jumpluffs, who dropped the Weepinbell. Temperance ran forward and caught it. Without Erika's Pokemon, there would be no way of destroying the PokeStone. Dodrio was easily fending off the zombies, some of them already fallen, others unable to battle. Then the final group landed – the Mr. Mime along with two Grovyles.

The Mr. Mime paused for a moment, opening its hideous mouth in a spell. The two Grovyles, already backing off his Dodrio, suddenly turned into his parents. His mother, round and cheerful face smiling as widely as the day he came back from Hoenn a year ago, was wearing the traditional apron of a housewife, advancing slowly towards him, arms outstretched. His father, slightly balding, was in office attire, having just returned from work. Briefcase in hand, he held out his hand in greeting. With only one difference. Both of them held knives in their hands.

Temperance walked slowly towards them, as if in a trance. One small part of his mind told him that it was an illusion, that these were undead Grovyles who would have no qualms about chopping off his head. The more powerful part asked him to throw his arms around them in a hug. Dodrio, seeing her master so unsure, hesitated, and a Jumpluff took the chance to cast sleeping powder over her. Dodrio, resisting with every second, was nevertheless put to sleep for a short period of time.

Temperance got closer to his parents. His parents raised their knives.


	4. Zapdos' Awakening

PokeStones of the Dead - Chapter Three

Temperance unconsciously bowed his head, almost as if preparing himself for the stroke to fall. Everything else, including the chanting Mr. Mime, was blurry in the background. Only the figures of his parents were crystal-clear. For the first time, Temperance paid more attention to the knives they were holding, and noticed that they were burning with a black fire, but the metal itself was white-hot. The knives were raised, and soon they would come down on Temperance's vulnerable and waiting neck.

The knives dropped… only to be met with a metal claw, the sound of the clash breaking the spell. Temperance's head snapped back up, focusing on the Mr. Mime, now no longer chanting, face clearly disappointed despite its hideous and blurred features. Dodrio had just woken up, thanks to its Early Bird trait, and Temperance felt the ring, mumbled a silent apology to his parents for being deceived by a cheap imitation, and turned to Dodrio for his revenge.

Dodrio complied, easily dodging the Mr. Mime's desperation Psybeam and slamming into it with full force. Pursuing it, Dodrio then Drill Pecked a hole in its back, causing the Mr. Mime to crumble into dust. The flies and maggots, disappointed at the loss of their host, made their way back to the attacking Dead, where rotting flesh was in great abundance.

Temperanceallowed himself a sigh of thanks for the narrow escape, and clenched his fist in anger and disappointment at himself for being tricked. _Don't let your emotions get in the way! Feeling for their death is acceptable and commendable, but allowing these emotions to get the better of you can be fatal! Anyway, why are your emotions suddenly rising? You've been able to do without them for years…_

And the attacks would have been fatal, if not for Lillette. Scizor had already dispatched one of the Grovyles, and the other, uncharacteristically running away, was frozen in place with a Mean Look from Misdreavus. Lillette, on seeing there was no danger, took the chance to scold Temperance again.

"Idiot… that's the second time in two hours that you've frozen mindlessly like that, waiting for death. Honestly, for someone with visibly strong and experienced Pokemon, you're acting like someone encountering his first Pokemon, fumbling to pronounce attacks and unable to find Poke Balls," Lillette said. Then her face softened, seemingly aware of what Temperance had been subjected to.

"You're Temperance, right? I vaguely saw your tag when searching through your stuff," Lillette said. She proceeded to gesture at the still-frozen Grovyle, unable to move. "You want to take your righteous and holy revenge, right? Do the honours."

Ignoring the slight bit of sarcasm present in Lillette's voice, Temperance nodded in appreciation, proceeding to took out a dagger from his pack. Usually used to cut bushes and tall grass when trekking in harsh terrain, the dagger would serve a more cruel purpose now. Temperance walked purposefully to the frozen Grovyle, touched the blade with his ring, and got to work.

Three slashes later, and the Grovyle was missing an arm, half a leg, and its ears. Temperance ignored the maggots crawling from every hole he made in his body, stabbing and slashing with unholy precision. Just as he was about to slice off the hated Grovyle's head, it snapped to life, then raised its remaining claw in an attack that would turn the tables instantly – by cutting off Temperance's head.

Temperance was too preoccupied with decapitating the Grovyle to care. Dagger in mid-swing, he suddenly saw the claw arching towards his face. Lillette saw it as well, but before she could order a block, a vine, seemingly from the PokeStone, shot out and blocked the attack. Temperance gasped. Had the legendary PokeStones come to life in the face of the Dead, helping all defenders?

Then he saw that the explanation was much less magical. The Weepinbell, freed from immobilisation, had simply stretched out to help her rescuer with a vine. She apparently had some revenge of her own, for she used another vine to grasp hold of the Grovyle, then flung it bodily. Temperance never even saw where the body landed.

Lillette smiled. "It looks as though she likes you."

Temperance took hold of the Weepinbell, smiling. It appeared that he would have a fourth Pokemon to help him in these troubled times. Before he could rejoice at the saving of the PokeStone and the addition of Weepinbell to his party, he looked at the main front, and gasped.

"Lillette! Most of the defenders are still paralysed with those accursed Stun Spores! The Dead are making paths into Lavender! We have to protect the city once more!"

Lillette spun to see where Temperance was pointing. Without a word, she ran with Scizor and Misdreavus to quell more streams of attack.

_That girl is one spirited individual._ Temperance gathered Dodrio and Weepinbell, and swiftly followed behind. There was yet some killing to do.

The dagger lay in Temperance's pack, the rotting flesh leaving a horrible dark stain on its blade. Temperance was starting to have doubts about his actions previously. Was it right to totally mutilate that Grovyle like that? It had been unbelievably cruel, not even giving it a quick end. Instead, he had removed limb after limb, much like a barbarian wielding an axe. _What is wrong with me?_ _I just swore to not let my emotions get the better of me, then I let anger take over and commit that sort of action… is it really possible to remain emotionless throughout this war?_

_Come on! It impersonated your mother… or father… and was about to cut of your head and take it as a prize. You know that!_

Temperance banished that small voice inside his head. True, what they did was terrible and they, of course, deserved to be banished from this earth, but the manner in which he did it was both unnecessary and sadistic. The two conflicting voices inside his head did nothing to release the stress inside him. In desperation, he turned to Lillette - the only one he could ask now - for advice.

"Lillette… what I did just now… was it acceptable?"

Expecting an angry and sardonic retort, Temperance was almost surprised to see Lillette turn back and stop entirely, facial expression, for once, hard to distinguish. Almost half a minute passed before Lillette gave her answer, her voice uncertain – again a first.

"Temperance, you do know that what they do is irrelevant. These… things… are not supposed to walk the earth at all. However, they were once Pokemon, and good Pokemon as well, serving their masters loyally before being claimed. It, from an outsider's view, was not acceptable. Yet we are allowed to let emotions take charge of us at times and do something originally unacceptable. As long as we do not get used to it, or let emotions take control of our entire soul, I think it is up to your heart. Does your heart think that what you did was fine?"

As Temperance pondered Lillette's words, a Kadabra behind them fell to the Dead. Lillette noticed it and replaced her soft demeanour with her usual self. "If you want to think about it, you'll have plenty of time when this entire episode is over, or when you lie in eternal sleep. The Dead are spilling through the ranks. We have to go NOW!"

Shaking his head at the sudden change, Temperance followed Lillette. This "emotions" thing was coming into the foreground more and more often. _My name does not mean I cannot have emotions. It just means that I show them in moderation. It is a virtue. I can be like the rest._ Temperance made a decision. Taking the horribly stale and smelly dagger from his pack, he let it drop to the ground. He just had his moment of revenge. He would get no more.

Temperance surveyed the scene. Most of the defenders, including the Fighting Dojo Master, had recovered, and were moving to resume their positions in the defensive lines. However, the Dead kept coming. The Barrier by Lillette's Xatu had long since expired, and Xatu was one of the few who still had not recovered from the aerial attack. Lillette was about to ask Misdreavus to Perish Song again, but Temperance stopped her, hand moving towards her mouth to cut off the attack command.

"What are you doing? Do you want them to break through?"

"Shut up!" Temperance said, for once quicker on the uptake. "Look at their ears, damnit!"

Lillette did as Temperance said and gasped. The Dead now had no ears. They were simply cut off, a grisly pile of ears visible in the distance. Temperance saw the sight and grimly understood that there could be no more doubt that there was an external force controlling these zombies. After seeing that many of his troops had fallen to Perish Song, the necromancer responsible for this attack had simply ordered all his minions to cut off their ears. Perish Song was now useless – and that was a huge blow to the defenders, seeing as the previous Perish Song had wiped out a significant portion of the Dead.

"Do you have an attack that affects an area?" Temperance asked. His Gyarados and Flygon were exhausted, and Temperance knew that ordering them to continue fighting would not only be cruel, but also suicide.

"Just Lapras… but she can't fight on land. Xatu is out of commission and Perish Song won't work here."

The Fighting Dojo Master asked all of his Psychic Pokemon to use Psywave on the invaders, but the attacks were weak and only served to slow the Dead's progress. After some early successes, it appeared as though the defending forces had run out of steam. Whenever a zombie went down, two more came to take its place. Things were looking grim.

Temperance released Dodrio and Weepinbell, but the action was half-hearted. Deep down he knew that even these two could only stem the tide. The army of Dead reached back as far as the eye could see, and their attacks to quell multiple enemies at once had all been foiled. Could he press Gyarados and Flygon again? Then he remembered him cutting the dagger through the air, towards the frozen Grovyle, and instantly banished the idea from his mind. He would be mean to no Pokemon, unless in desperate circumstances. Next to him, Lillette showed no sign of despair, but she was weary, and Temperance for the first time noticed eyebags around her usually spirited eyes.

"Weepinbell, Razor Leaf!"

Weepinbell shot four sharp leaves, a graze with them already able to draw blood. With their weakened bodies, the Dead never stood a chance. Six were instantly beheaded by the leaves, while a dozen more fell to the ground. However, many more filled their spots. The frontline was now at the barricades, raining imprecise blows on them, but eventually they would get through. He had to delay them enough for the Rock Tunnel to be cleared, so reinforcements could arrive from Cerulean. Then, a man ran into Lavender from the Rock Tunnel with a Hitmonchan, both panting. Even fit Fighting Pokemon were tired. Speaking to the Fighting Dojo Master, he pronounced the words of doom.

"The rocks are cleared, but there is some sort of invisible force field or barrier. It is impassable. Appearing to be some kind of magic…"

So, it appeared that the necromancer behind this attack had prepared for it and made the Rock Tunnel truly a dead end. They were on their own… and if that was the case, they would die. Slowly, but eventually, the Dead would force their way through, and they would die. Temperance considered asking everyone to evacuate and move towards Vermillion, but abandoning the Radio Tower and the Cemetery would be suicide anyway. The already formidable ranks of the Dead would be bolstered further.

_If I will die, I'll take as many of them as I can with me. _Temperance, for the first time in his life, prayed, not to anyone in particular. There was little hope for him anyway, so it was more of a despairing gesture than anything else. One of the Dead made the final blow on one of the barricades, splintering and falling. The zombies now had a path to get through, stepping into the city boundaries for the first time.

Then a mighty and powerful shriek was heard from the direction of the Power Plant, surprising the living and zombie alike. The trainers and their living Pokemon were strengthened, and new hope unlooked-for seeped into their hearts. Paralysed Pokemon were healed, those exhausted found new energy in that cry, and the defenders found new strength. Lillette's Xatu renewed the Barrier, and Flygon Fire Blasted the first wave of Dead, causing them to smoulder and fall back. But the _coup de grace_ was to come later.

A yellow bird took to the skies, but this was not just a mere yellow bird. Humongous and majestic, it travelled the skies at an astonishing rate, but even in the haste, still retained all of its beauty. Almost shining in its brilliance, Zapdos had appeared. And what an appearance it was, launching itself straight into Route 8. Those Dead that were flying were utterly destroyed by its sharp wings and beak. Those under fared no better. Untouched in the sky, the bird gave a great cry once more, and the bright clouds suddenly turned dark. A thunderstorm had come, and with it the lightning.

Soon, lightning was peppering Route 8 with dreadful accuracy. Not one bolt struck Lavender or Saffron, all of its wrath directed to the Dead. The lightning grew so frequent that Temperance, observing below, could not tell if the bolts came from the clouds or from the bird itself. All the defenders gazed upwards, spellbound by the great power and beauty of the legendary Zapdos.

Then, the spell lifted, and the defenders gave a great war-cry, then charged at the retreating and horrified zombies. All the surviving Pokemon were restored to their original fitness, and they charged at the Dead now, sending them all back to their rightful place.

Zapdos, seeing this, stopped the lightning. It gazed at the battlefield, convinced that its work here was done, let loose with a final awesome Thunderbolt, then took to the skies, flying away faster than the eye could follow.

_A shadowy figure stood in a dark room, watching the Dead – his Dead – being totally wiped out. He chuckled, not appearing to care, instead replaying Zapdos' appearance over and over._

_"So, you have awakened, Zapdos… and what will you do when I call for your blood?"_


	5. Calm Before the Storm

PokeStones of the Dead – Chapter Four

Lavender had been secured. All the Dead had been banished back to the afterlife, cornered between Sabrina's attacking forces from Saffron and the energised trainers from Lavender. Route 8 was now clear of the Dead. The stranglehold the Dead had on the central regions of Kanto had lessened. To their delight, Temperance and Lillette heard from Sabrina and Janine that the Dead attacking Saffron had been forced to retreat.

"Thanks for your help at Lavender," Janine said. Temperance knew that her father had been killed when the Dead invaded Fuchsia, and respectfully remained silent, all the time holding his ring. "That ring… did you lose someone in the battle as well?" Temperance did not answer. He was unable to answer. The expression on his face was enough to tell her the whole story.

Janine understood, and choked back tears, unable to continue. Grief had taken many of them, and Temperance knew that he was far from alone when he lost his parents. Why was this going on? The Dead, controlled by an unknown necromancer, attacking cities all of a sudden. What could be gained from such surprise attacks? Apart from death and despair? Temperance and Lillette took their leave. They had things to discuss.

"Lillette, what's the situation now?" Temperance said, talking to her in front of the Saffron PokeStone. Radios and the television were broadcasting the great victory at Route 8, carrying pictures of Zapdos. Apparently, the Radio Tower was none the worse for the invasion, DJs still reporting with their usual enthusiasm.

Lillette put her slim hands on the PokeStone, almost as if trying to absorb the power within it. The Alakazam was wonderfully crafted, and could pass for a real one if not for its colour, but there was hidden power within, as well. Lillette knew that these stones were instruments of great power… and destruction, if one used them that way. It appeared as though they were also a portal to the realm of the Dead. Why was this happening?

"The Dead now occupy only the areas of Celadon and Fuchsia, along with Routes 14, 15 and 16 connecting them. They cannot risk another invasion of Saffron. It is too well protected now, and fresh reinforcements have come in from Cerulean. Fuchsia may try to strike out and retake Vermillion, but I have stationed several guards there. Their numbers have been severely lessened, and I think they will hold the fort for now."

"But… they may invade Cinnabar via the Sea Route 19 from Fuchsia, right? The forces at Cinnabar are weak… shouldn't we hurry –" Temperance was cut off with an impatient gesture from Lillette and a click of the tongue.

"The legendary birds are tied together. If Zapdos has awakened, I would not be surprised to find Moltres and Articuno active too. Seafoam is definitely closed to the Dead, at least in an open attack. In fact, I am surprised that there has not been news of Moltres torching the zombies at Victory Road, aided by the Elite Four. The world is changing. The legendary birds have not been seen in Kanto for over five decades. Something is happening that is causing them to move."

"What is happening… we don't know anything! We need to find out why the Dead are attacking! It is said that when Pokemon die, all their sins are extinguished, and they live a life of peace, right?"

"Yes. This is why I am so worried that ALL the Dead are attacking. A few evil and dark Pokemon, yes, but everyone? How powerful is this necromancer that we are talking about? Besides controlling thousands of Dead, he can also block the Rock Tunnel, all from afar."

"Lillette… I think there was an event that happened far previously that explains why this is happening. Are there any historical records?"

Lillette laughed, her clear voice sounding strange after the horrible cries and growls of the Dead. "No, you'd be hard-pressed to find a library here – everyone is so obsessed with Pokemon. I think that there is only one place with these records – Indigo Plateau."

_Past all those Dead at Victory Road? But why can't we just get the Elite Four to tell us –_

"And don't bother asking the Elite Four to tell us." Lillette continued. There is only one person who can gain access to those records – the Champion of Kanto."

"What…! The Champion…"

"Yes, and now that you mention it; I think that going for that prize might be a good idea. Before you say ANYTHING, the Elite Four will NOT just allow access even if the fate of the world depended on it. They're very rule-conscious, shall we say. Now, my house is nearby, and I am going for a wash. Do whatever you want to do – Saffron is very big – and we'll meet back here in two hours," Lillette concluded, turning away with a wave, throwing back her long dark hair.

Temperance was about to leave, but on an impulse, called after her. She was about the same age as him, after all, but didn't seem to have parents. "Lillette, where are your parents?"

Lillette froze in place, turning back, silent. Shooting Temperance an icy glare, she just shook her head, then continued walking. Obviously, that was a sore spot, and she had no desire to talk about it. _Damn you, Lillette. My parents were brutally killed, and I talked about it to someone I just met a couple of hours ago. How much worse can your story be?_

Temperance walked around the city, exploring. He considered getting a Leaf Stone to evolve Weepinbell, and almost did, until he felt his pocket. His wallet was gone. _Curses! There goes any hope of buying anything._ In the end, Temperance just did not have the mood to enjoy the city, or even explore Silph Co., but slumped to the ground, totally exhausted. Getting a room for two hours was out of the question, and he did not even have a tent to sleep for the time. _If only Lillette had invited me… then again, maybe that wouldn't be such a good idea after all._

Temperance ended up spending the next two hours sleeping on the floor, like some homeless beggar. Nonetheless, he still fell into a deep sleep, exhausted from the prior battle at Lavender. Truth be told, he was only too aware that the battle was only won because of Zapdos' awakening.

_A man, cloaked with some red material, was preparing a concoction in a room. He saw the four broken PokeStones he had collected displayed in a place of prominence, as if they were trophies. From one of them, the man moved his hands over it, muttering a language that was indecipherable. The Stone responded, and leaked some sort of yellow liquid that the man collected. Then he smirked, and said,_ _"So, Zapdos… how mighty are you? Can you resist my call for your blood?"_

Temperance woke up, shivering. He had been sleeping for two hours, even though it felt like only minutes. Hurrying back to the PokeStone, he could see Lillette approaching, evidently washed up. For one, she had had a change of clothes, although they were much the same as her original attire – long-sleeved shirt and long pants - army uniform, basically. Also, as Temperance got closer, he could faintly smell her shampoo – jasmine scented.

"So, we shall have some peace for a while. The leaders here can take care of any Dead in Celadon or Fuchsia. Is it decided that we shall go to Indigo Plateau?" Temperance asked.

"Yes, let us go. Reports are coming in that Moltres is active at Victory Road. We just have to instigate the Dead, and it will aid our cause… and then we will face the task of getting to the Elite Four and defeating them. After getting the records, we will… we should… find out why this is happening, and we can end this dreadful war once and for all."

The two left Saffron northwards, going to Cerulean. The water-based city was untouched by the Dead, still looking much the same, but the citizens were strangely silent. When seeing the two strangers, they practically ran away, clearly afraid. War affected everyone, not just those directly involved. And most had no desire to get mixed up in the affairs of those actively involved in this brutal conflict – even if their interference helped the citizens of Kanto.

Temperance still had a few questions, however. Why did no help arrive from Johto and Hoenn? Temperance was sure that such a conflict would affect every world, not just Kanto. If Kanto fell, the other two worlds would no doubt be in danger as well. Posing the question to Lillette, Temperance got another stern rebuke.

"Get with the times. The relationship between the three worlds has been very frosty, with all three thinking their world is the strongest, most deserving of help, etcetera. Not to belittle the Gym Leaders, but they have not ruled Kanto well at all. Strong Pokemon trainers have not been produced in a very long while – training fees have been rising for the Gym Leaders to buy absurd objects to improve their own Pokemon."

Temperance considered this. No help would be forthcoming. The situation seemed bleaker than ever.

Temperance and Lillette continued past Cerulean and towards Mt. Moon. Along the way, Lillette told Temperance of the events that had caused relations between Kanto and the other two worlds to become strained. Johto had proposed a joint tournament or exhibition that would showcase the Gym Leaders of all three worlds – a worldwide event that would be accompanied by a chance for trainers all over to challenge the Gym Leaders from all worlds. However, Kanto refused to take part on the grounds that the tournament would be a farce as Kanto trainers would overpower the other two worlds, and Kanto could not afford to waste money to organise an event just to dominate the other parties.

"Basically, Kanto did not want Johto to catch up to its state of development. Johto, as you probably know, is far away from Kanto in terms of income and general standard of living. Kanto felt that this tournament would give Pokemon in Johto unwanted publicity and thus would endanger its status as the top Pokemon world. So, they invented some excuse about financial difficulties, which angered Johto, as well as insulted Johto to really call off the event. Hoenn, upset at the way things had turned out, promptly took Johto's side and ignored Kanto." _So that's why help hasn't arrived…_

There was really only one way for the two to get to Viridian – through Mt. Moon, then Pewter. Finally, they would take the path of Viridian Forest to Viridian City proper, before eventually get to Victory Road via the west exit of the city. However, Temperance's sixth sense was worrying him. Something had been missed.

"Lillette, can't we just take Diglett's Cave from Vermillion? It goes straight to Pewter, and we would avoid Mt. Moon and all that long trekking…"

Lillette pondered the question. It was true that going back to Vermillion and taking the shortcut of Diglett's Cave would be easier than taking this long route. Admittedly, she hadn't even thought of the possibility in her haste, but the Digletts were multiplying faster than anyone had expected, and were practically blocking the path. Excited Digletts tended to cause cave-ins, and being stuck in a dark cave with only Digletts and Dugtrios for company was not high on Lillette's priority list.

"Hey, sorry, but we're already here. Going back to Vermillion and using the Cave would take about the same amount of time. We might as well grin and bear it. Anyway, the Digletts were lucky not to become one of the zombies. Vermillion was retaken too fast for them to be converted to one of those… things… let's not spoil their lucky break."

On their way out of Cerulean, the duo met Misty, who had apparently heard about their arrival and imminent departure. She had apparently released all of her Pokemon, from her prized Starmie to her little Poliwag. Actually, there were many Poliwags. Her Politoeds had been breeding. Temperance noted this with a little sadness. Everyone was on their guard, and no one really kept their Pokemon in their Poke Balls anymore. Even the most powerful of them. Gym Leaders came rather close to the top, and they still felt the need to have walking bodyguards. What was happening to everybody?

"Hey. Sabrina told me that you two were going to fight the Elite Four?" Misty asked. Lillette answered in the affirmative, and reached down to pat one of the tens of Poliwags. "Those all yours?"

"Yeah… I left my two Politoeds together for more time than I should have. Oh well, good luck for the Elite Four. I'll give you something… any of you have water Pokemon? Oh… Gyarados and Lapras? Gyarados I can't do anything about, but since Lapras can't usually fight on land, I'll let it do so. Give it to me."

Lillette did so, and Misty ran her hands over the water Pokemon, her hands glowing with a strange light. It was as if there was a pool of water suspended in the air. Slowly lowering itself into Lapras, the spell finished, and Lapras was now permanently encased in a water bubble that allowed it both to breathe more freely as well as to move on land. It worked perfectly. For the first time, Temperance wondered at the power of the Gym Leaders, and whether their PokeStones had their power. If so, someone controlling these stones would be practically all 8 Gym Leaders at once… a power that even the Elite Four could not overcome.

"Thanks," Lillette said. It was very nice of you." She and Temperance waved goodbye to Misty, who gazed one more time at her Starmie PokeStone, checking one more time that it was safe and secure, and then turned her back at the exact same time as the duo. No one noticed the dark figure sneaking away one of Misty's Poliwag babies, a mere shadow in the dark sky, lasting for only an instant, before it was once again lost in the distance, travelling at an unnatural speed.

Temperance and Lillette left Cerulean City as they entered Route 4, a very short path leading to Mt. Moon. Mt. Moon was inhabited by cave-based Pokemon such as Zubats and Geodudes, but the magical mountain also rarely featured Moon Pokemon as well. They were usually peaceful, as long as they were not disturbed. It was just going to be a short period of discomfort in the damp and dark cave, before they got out to Pewter City.

They could not have been more wrong.


	6. Mt Moon

PokeStones of the Dead - Chapter Five

The entrance to Mt. Moon was in the distance. Temperance and Lillette walked on, strangely apprehensive of the dark tunnel through the mountain. Temperance banished these thoughts of doubt from his mind. The mountain was perfectly safe. It would just be a routine trek through the tunnel, and he would find himself a short distance from Pewter. So why were there nagging doubts remaining in his mind, telling him that he was walking into terrible danger? Temperance thought of confessing these thoughts to Lillette, but he could already visualise her reaction. Not wishing to be humiliated any further, he kept silent and convinced himself that everything was ok.

Entering the tunnel, Temperance let his night vision kick in, and then glanced around the place. He had almost expected an attack by bloodthirsty Golbats, but it was just his overactive imagination. Bats did not attack people without reason, and indeed, they were slumbering peacefully at the roof of the high tunnel. Definitely not a threat to security.

The path was surprisingly well-tended and marked. As long as the two stuck to the path, which was wide enough for about four people walking side by side, there would not be a problem. Temperance did not remember Mt. Moon being so well tended when he was here, and concluded that either Misty or Brock must have made this place more user-friendly for travellers. Seeing the improved conditions, he felt better about the place.

Until he saw the PokeStone.

"What? Why is there a PokeStone here? I thought that apart from the eight cities, there were only smaller ones at Pallet, Seafoam, and Lavender -"

"Oh, not again. A while ago, more PokeStones were built at Mt. Moon and Viridian Forest. Cerulean and Pewter built them respectively. I think there is one at Victory Road, considering the Dead attack over there, but who built it is a mystery… In case you're worried, that stone there is very obviously intact, so you should get a grip."

Temperance glanced at the Stone, which was still solid, with no signs of it about to be cracked. He resumed walking, only to stop less than five minutes later when a shadowy figure whirled past them.

"Lillette, did you see that?"

Lillette did not answer. Finally, she was able to feel the danger, and cursed herself for her stupidity. Their journey was far too well-publicised – it was even on the radio – and anyone with half a brain would know that they would pass through Mt. Moon. She hadn't been in tip-top condition since the Lavender battle, and no matter how she tried to hide it, Temperance's question about her parents had shaken her. Taking Diglett's Cave would have been a better idea. Should they turn back?

"Temperance, I think we should –"

The sentence froze on her lips, as Mt. Moon was suddenly thrown into a bright light, forcing both Temperance and Lillette to squint, the sudden change rendering both temporarily blind. Before any of them could properly realise what was going on, a horrible voice filled the tunnel, grating and disembodied. Malice were in those words, almost as if they were solid and carrying power with them.

"So, you aim at stopping my ambitions? They are far beyond what any of you can imagine! They are… well, perhaps it is not wise to reveal them now. Let's just say that they are not the usual and clichéd conquest of Kanto and beyond. I need all three legendaries, I can tell you that much."

Temperance and Lillette's eyes got used to the light, and focused their eyes on the man. However, despite the bright light, it seemed as if the man was totally shrouded in darkness. There were no distinguishable features, save that he was cloaked in some red material. Blood-red, on closer examination.

"Now, we can get to business. I have a Poliwag here that belongs to the Cerulean City Gym Leader. It would not be enough to break the main PokeStone, but for a smaller one like this, it would do perfectly fine. Prepare yourselves for the Dead."

Lillette looked panic-stricken, but mouthed to Temperance, "Take out your dagger. It's in your pack. I took it and washed it for you. Remember, you do not have to erase memories, even those you regret."

Temperance drew the dagger, earning himself a laugh from the cloaked figure. "Oh, go ahead and converse, go ahead and attack me! I think you'd be biting off more than you can chew if you decide to strike. Anyway, I doubt that you'll be on time. I'll do this quickly…"

Running his hands over the frozen Poliwag, the man muttered an incantation that caused the Clefable PokeStone to glow in return. Even as Temperance ran forward with the dagger, the man raised his hand, and a black bolt of energy ran down, hitting the Poliwag. Blood spattered everywhere, and the PokeStone turned completely red, the colour of the man's cloak. A second incantation was all that it took for the Stone's foundations to crumble, the man easily lifting it from its roots. In its place was the same hole Temperance saw at Vermillion.

Temperance finally reached the man, and struck with the dagger, but he had already jumped aside. The unnatural light faded, causing the tunnel to revert back into darkness. With no light, the man was virtually invisible, blending in with the natural surroundings.

"Well, I have to darken the lights. The Dead prefer the dark… and now I must be going. I hope you have a pleasant time," the necromancer concluded, the final statement mocking their helplessness. Then he was gone, simply disappearing into thin air. Was it an image of the necromancer that carried out the task? Or, did he really have the power to teleport? There was no time to care.

Temperance and Lillette heard the same cold and clammy breathing that was at Vermillion. The exit to Cerulean glowed with a purple light, and Temperance knew that this was the same force field that was at the Rock Tunnel. No legendary birds were going to save them now. As both of them released their Pokemon, the Dead were already starting to climb up through the newly-made hole.

"Temperance! We have to stop the Dead from crawling out of the hole! If all of them get out, we're dead for sure!"

Lillette's Lapras went over to the side of the hole, sending multiple Hydro Pumps down it, causing those climbing up to lose their grip and fall back all the way down. Then, she shot an Ice Beam down the hole, freezing some of the water and forming a makeshift barrier against the climbing zombies. However, it was but a temporary respite. The sheet of ice covering the hole was far too thin to keep out the Dead for very long. Already, the sheer numbers of those climbing already pushed those at the front halfway up the hole.

"Weepinbell, Sleep Powder!"

Weepinbell released sleep-inducing powder from her mouth, causing all those touched by it to fall into a deep sleep. However, the powder only affected those at the top of the pile, and they were quickly brushed aside by their more eager companions. Many of the Dead were crushed and trampled in the chaotic melee, but there were still more to come. Temperance consoled himself with a thought that there could not be too many dead buried in Mt. Moon, and therefore the numbers here could not be as many as those attacking Lavender.

Then, a horde of undead Zubats flew to the top faster than any of those who were crawling, smashing through the ice as if it were rice paper, then launched a surprise attack against the defenders. Going for Lapras, again directed by the same man that had just sealed the tunnel, they would have succeeded in drawing first blood if not for a fast Aerial Ace from Dodrio, who knocked two of them out of the air. Temperance mounted Flygon and rose in aerial combat with the Zubats.

"Lillette, stop those crawling up! I'll take care of those flying! Dodrio, cover me!" And with that, Flygon flew at the Zubats head to head. One on one, Flygon was no doubt the victor, but when faced with many tens of Zubats, all clawing and leeching, even the thick hide of Temperance's Flygon could be penetrated. And indeed, Zubats were soon surrounding Flygon. Powerful slashes ripped most of them to bits, but a Zubat managed to get close enough to bite Temperance, drawing blood. Luckily, with only one Zubat attacking, the injury was so small as to be negligible.

"This is ridiculous; you can't do this on your own – Go, Xatu!" Lillette's own Flying Pokemon took to the skies, aiding Temperance in fighting off the pesky Zubats. Meanwhile, Dodrio was surveying the air for any surprise attacks, in which case a good Aerial Ace was in order.

Misdreavus was casting Mean Looks at all those climbing up the hole, freezing them in place. However, it couldn't last for long, and the torrent of Dead still marched slowly upwards. Lillette was now close enough to distinguish the types: Geodudes and Gravelers, with a few Onixes as well. Weak, but effective in numbers. It appeared as if the former two were climbing on top of the Onixes in order to get to the top faster. The man clearly knew about battle strategies.

"Flygon, Slash!"

Flygon aimed his claws at a trio of attacking Zubats, and did a vicious slash at their torsos, sending two down to the ground. The other one was dispatched by a Aerial Ace from Dodrio. Xatu was at the other end of the cavern, not only trapping the attackers against the wall with Barrier, but also using both physical and special attacks to destroy the Zubats. They were going down fast now, unable to cope with the faster and more powerful Flygon and Xatu. Whenever one sneaked by unnoticed, it was always shot down by Dodrio before it could strike.

The ground defence was not going so well. Despite the continued efforts of Misdreavus, Weepinbell and Lapras, pure body mass kept the Dead aloft and actively climbing up. Lillette knew that they couldn't stop the offensive for much longer. Temperance had to deal with the Zubats fast, so they could strike the land-based Pokemon with full force.

Temperance complied, as Flygon engulfed the last few with a Fire Blast, succeeding in stopping the first wave of attackers with only a bitten leg to tend. As Flygon and Xatu landed, the first rock hand closed around the rim of the hole. Temperance never believed that rock could decay, until now. It seemed like the skin of the Pokemon was inconsequential in preventing the rot of the afterlife.

Temperance drew his dagger as he waited for the offensive to begin. There wasn't much hope anyway, but Temperance would fight to the death. He would not be taken by that freak of a necromancer that easily.

The Geodudes and Gravelers were out of the hole, bloodshot eyes and white faces screaming for fresh blood, human or Pokemon alike. Scizor shot a Silver Wind at them, sending many tumbling back into the hole again, but more were to come, and the battle was truly on. Even as Xatu repeatedly shot Psybeams at the zombies, and Weepinbell unleashed multiple Razor Leafs at them, slicing through their bodies like a hot knife through butter, it was impossible to quell the tide. Almost a hundred of the Dead were out now, some covered in blood, some rotting away, all smelling like decomposing garbage. Temperance thought of doing the double Earthquake again, but realised that such a move would cause a complete cave-in and really leave them in dire straits. In fact, even a single Earthquake was unacceptable.

Lillette jumped on Lapras, then commanded her to use Surf, sending both trainer and Pokemon cleanly over the attacking rock Pokemon. Those under Lapras' trajectory was hit with water as forceful as a tsunami, remains not even visible. The Dead were distracted – Lillette and Temperance were now in opposite directions. They split up, one going for each trainer. Now, both of them were facing a smaller mass of zombies. Temperance noticed with some joy that the flow from the hole was starting to ebb. A quick estimate got him a total of three hundred zombies, not more. Things may not be as grim as he thought. Then again, three hundred against ten was a terrible mismatch.

"Gyarados, Taunt!"

Gyarados roared, challenging all to attack him, and him only. The Dead complied, switching their targets from Temperance to Gyarados. Temperance, using the opportunity, ordered Flygon and Dodrio to backstab the attackers. Defenceless, those at the back were torn to shreds by Drill Peck and Slash, while Weepinbell defended Gyarados while he continued taunting, her vines grabbing hold of those getting close to the serpent.

Pleased with his strategy, Temperance glanced at the hole, where the flow appeared to have stopped. Then two more rose up – a Golem and a Crobat. Crobat moved much faster than any of the Zubats had done. Even as Flygon rose to take care of it, it nimbly dodged to the side, then started raining Sludge Bombs down on the defenders. As Temperance was distracted, an Onix got past Weepinbell's guard and pounced on Gyarados, both their bodies wrapping around each other for control. Temperance was not worried that the Onix would triumph over Gyarados – its skin was weak, and Gyarados would have the situation under control in a few minutes – but those few minutes would be crucial as the Dead could now target the trainers, who had much less natural defence against attacks than Pokemon.

The Golem was much slower, but more powerful. Lumbering to Lillette's side, it managed to take a Silver Wind from Scizor and remain on its feet – a first as far as the zombies were concerned. Gyarados was in no shape to continue Taunting, the zombies were getting close to both parties, and all of them were exhausted. Temperance watched helpless, out of tricks. Was their last stand to end so soon?

Then, a flock of Zubats and Golbats from the cave wall descended, taking part in the battle. Temperance's first reaction was to despair, but on more careful observation, these bats were not dead, and as they launched themselves at the Crobat and the Golem, Temperance understood that they were not the only ones fighting for a cause. Even wild Pokemon with minimal intellect knew that this was against the rightful flow of nature and life.

Gyarados had gotten the better of the Onix, and stood up again, in a terrible rage. Those of the faint-hearted had been known to faint when seeing a Gyarados like that. While the Dead could not know fear, they certainly could take damage from his outrage. Thrashing about in rage, Gyarados sent all those who hit his wildly moving body flying across the room. Suddenly unsure, the Dead turned back towards Temperance, only to find a bristling Dodrio by his side, while Flygon flew overhead, pelting them with rocks. Surrounded by evils, the Dead had nowhere to go.

Over at Lillette's side, the Zubats were keeping the Golem distracted enough not for it to join the attack proper, and the beams of freezing ice from Lapras and Mean Looks from Misdreavus were enough to keep the rest at bay for Scizor and Xatu to dispatch. There was a bit of a scare when a Graveler finally came close enough to get a hand on Lapras, but Xatu focused, sending the offending Pokemon high up into the tunnel ceiling, before letting it land far below, corpse instantly mutilated.

As the numbers of the Dead dwindled, the hope inside Temperance's and Lillette's hearts increased proportionally.


	7. Emotions and Revelations

PokeStones of the Dead - Chapter Six

"Dodrio, Drill Peck!"

"Scizor, Metal Claw!"

Temperance's and Lillette's Pokemon applied the finishing touches to the rest of the Dead, and soon the Crobat and the Golem were the only ones left, still struggling to fight off the mass of Zubats bothering them. Suddenly, Golem used Rollout, throwing the bats aside, while Crobat let loose with a piercing scream, causing splitting headaches in most of the defenders. Confused, Lillette barely noticed as Golem threw a rock at her, hitting a leg and trapping it underneath.

Beating off the Zubats for the last time, Crobat swooped down for the kill, sharp fangs the only thing that was still intact from its former self. Lillette, trapped and defenceless, could only watch on as the Crobat approached, her Pokemon all afflicted too badly by the Supersonic to help her. The Golem finally succumbed to the Zubats, and crumbled to dust, but the Zubats were too far away from Crobat to stop it.

And then came Temperance on Flygon, the only one of his Pokemon to have remained clear-minded from the Supersonic. Flygon shot fire at the Crobat, but the Crobat dodged the attack and continued going towards Lillette. It was now barely five metres away, and Flygon probably could not get to her in time.

The Crobat was next to Lillette now, mouth open, exposing horribly deformed gums and tongue. Only its two canine teeth were untouched, still white and sharp. The teeth now approached Lillette's open neck, her still trying desperately to lift her leg from the rock she was trapped under.

And then Temperance jumped from his Flygon, dagger out and ready for action. Going between Crobat and Lillette, Temperance's dagger struck Crobat's teeth in a clash of blades. While the Crobat reeled from the shock and the pain, Temperance's elegant riposte cut the Crobat into two. There was to be no vampire bat feasting on flesh today.

As both trainer and Pokemon recovered, Flygon lifted the rock, freeing Lillette from her prison that would have claimed her life if not for the timely intervention. Shaken but unhurt, she got up, legs wobbly from the near-death experience. Once she had confirmed that there was to be no lasting damage, she faced Temperance, and there was none of the conviction and impatience that had been part of her personality. Instead, there was an unsure and afraid girl standing there, looking for all the world like a girl on her first day of school, not a hard and trained soldier.

"Temperance… you saved me?" Lillette ventured, as if her brain had not totally absorbed all that had happened. Without waiting for a reply, she continued, "I'm sorry. You were right, this way was a bad choice… and I wouldn't have survived if not for you. You're no longer the person who I saw frozen at the edge of the Vermillion City hole, or the person eager for blind revenge at Lavender. You've changed a lot for the better."

Temperance took Lillette's hand, her fingers still cold from the close proximity to the hole. "I'm sorry for asking you about your parents at Saffron. I knew it upset you, and you haven't really been the same analytical girl that I saw at Vermillion and Lavender."

Lillette smiled, shaking her head. "That question was for my good. It allowed me to see what sort of person you are, and whether my trust in you then was misplaced. It certainly was not, and you've surprised me by being so sensitive again. As for my parents… It's nothing really. My mother died soon after I was born, and my father turned to drink and became abusive… the same things you see in every television serial. I never really knew love… except perhaps now."

Staring at the dumbfounded expression on Temperance's face, Lillette let her hand drop. "I'll leave you to ponder what that meant. In the meantime, I perceive that the exit to Pewter is clear, and we have an Elite Four to beat."

And she just walked off, her emotional self replaced again by the hard demeanour. Temperance, still frozen, recalled his Pokemon, and walked after her, still processing her statement. As the two saw the light of the sun, and saw Pewter City in the distance, he wondered how much longer this would last.

Temperance and Lillette passed through Pewter City quickly, after Brock sweared on his life that none of his Pokemon had been taken. This confirmed made the path through Viridian Forest safe – the two had no desire to be ambushed once more. The two discussed the subject of resting at Pewter after the horror at Mt. Moon, but they eventually decided to continue to Viridian, where there was actually a good hotel. Whereas, accommodation in Pewter was sadly lacking, unless you counted the Museum.

After leaving Pewter, Temperance and Lillette shortly passed through Viridian Forest. Really, the only reason why it was called a forest was because it was the largest forested area in Kanto. It really wasn't that big – just a couple of hour's walk through the tall grass and bushes. Originally, those travelling through would have to be alert for being attacked by Pokemon such as Beedrill and Spearow. Now, the forest was deadly quiet. Even the cries of wild Pokemon and the rustling of the branches in the wind were absent. It seemed like everyone was hiding.

The walk passed by mostly in silence. Both were thinking of the road ahead. The operation against the Dead at Victory Road was by no means a slam-dunk. Even if the Elite Four took the chance to sandwich the Dead, they could always break out via the route to Viridian. With only Temperance and Lillette guarding that way, it was far from a road block. At the very least, some would escape and report to their master, if he didn't know about the situation already. Too much was counting on Moltres appearing. In fact, all they had was a theory that Moltres would appear. Lillette was starting to doubt herself after the total failure at Mt. Moon.

Viridian was now visible in the distance. Brock had previously told them of a famous hotel in Viridian that was very comfortable. Temperance had withdrawn some money at Pewter and was looking forward to the stay. The sun was setting over their heads. Temperance knew that they were behind schedule. The original plan was to collect reinforcements from Viridian before they set off the next morning. But the ambush at Mt. Moon had wasted valuable time, and there would be no chance to speak with Giovanni before nightfall.

By the time they reached Viridian at night, both were completely exhausted. Dragging their limbs, all crying for rest, to the hotel, they asked for two rooms. Temperance, instead of washing up and having a free buffet dinner at the restaurant downstairs, simply collapsed on his bed and slept soundly the entire night, not noticing any of the facilities provided by the hotel.

Temperance was to regret this decision when he woke up. He was unbelievably filthy, as well as very hungry. The hotel did not provide a free breakfast, so he was forced to cough up more of his dwindling supply of money on it. Filling his plate in record time with the food, he finished it in seven minutes, and then went for seconds… and thirds… and fourths. By the time he was finished, people were staring at him and holding their noses. Getting himself to the lobby, he saw Lillette about to leave, refreshed. She had obviously had breakfast before she went up to pack and go.

"There you are! It's already 10 in the morning, let's go look for Giovanni! We're already behind schedule, you know."

"Um… can you wait for me? I have to go take a shower. I forgot to take one last night."

Lillette looked about to shout at him, then took a whiff of the odour coming from Temperance, and said, "You smell as bad as the Dead. Ok, I'll wait for you. Make it quick, I've already checked out. I'll be in the lobby."

"You can wait in my room…"

Lillette turned and shot an icy stare at him. The words froze in Temperance's mouth and he hurried upstairs to get himself cleaned up.

Temperance took a long time scrubbing away the dirt and grime on his clothes and skin, before finally descending with his pack to a very frustrated Lillette, who stood up the moment she saw Temperance and walked out of the hotel without saying a word. Chasing after her, Temperance saw that she had something gleaming green in her hand, but knew better than to press her on what it was.

"OK, Mr. Slowcoach, I've taken the time you took to… wash… to make an appointment with Giovanni, so we don't have to wait in line or take a number. Many of the residents are worried and hence are approaching him for help and advice. Oh yeah, and I was able to procure a Leaf Stone from the Mart. You really owe me big."

Handing over the Leaf Stone, Lillette then turned her back to Temperance, and would not say another word until the two reached the Gym. Temperance fell behind, confused.

_What is up with this girl? First she as good as tells me she likes me, then blows me off, then gets a Leaf Stone for me, then blows me off again… it's like living in a tornado. Sigh._

As the two reached the gym, they saw Giovanni waiting just inside the door, hands open in a gesture of welcome. Temperance and Lillette smiled and went in, where they immediately asked for reinforcements.

"Well, I have some extra Pokemon here, but I can't leave my post, can I? The city is in a status of chaos. Even the good news at Lavender did nothing to lighten their hearts. People are turning to me for help every hour. If I left now everyone would probably go mad. However, for the good news, I can spare each of you one Pokemon to call your own. Heard you're going against the Elite Four. While tournament rules are 3v3, you two will still need the variety of choice. The Elite Four are ridiculously strong!"

Lillette spoke. "We understand, Mr. Giovanni. If you could spare us each one of your fine Pokemon, it would be good enough for us."

Giovanni led them deeper into his gym, talking all the time. "Yes, I used to be… still am… the head of Team Rocket. I do apologise for that short period of chaos when I was not in charge, and they decided to take matters into my own hands. Then I found out that they would not go away, and would wreak less havoc with me in charge than not. Actually, even if they did try to steal things and take over companies, I don't think many would be surprised or too bothered. This Dead thing trumps anything Team Rocket could do."

They had arrived at the battling arena, where Giovanni typically took on those who decided to challenge him. "This place hasn't been used for battle in a year. People are less powerful and motivated now as before. You two are an exception. I doubt you'll want to take me on?"

Lillette politely declined, explaining that they had to make for Indigo with all haste possible. Giovanni nodded, and then gave them one Poke Ball each. "I know what Pokemon you guys have already… the radio has been singing your praises since the Lavender battle. I think you'll find them useful."

Temperance released his, and a Houndoom came out, the Dark and Fire dog growling, but not at anyone in particular. Temperance knew from experience that Houndooms were reasonably fast, and both their Dark and Fire attacks packed a big punch. Lillette, looking at her Rhydon, seemed very satisfied with the gift.

"By the way, what you are fighting for is not the Gym Leaders. Due to the way the system works, having a majority is equivalent to being able to pass all laws without any regard for the people. I've been against the other Gym Leaders taxing the people heavily so they can't even save a morsel from their meagre salary. The country is prospering, yes, but I can't say the same for the people. I, Misty, and Erika have been fighting for a fair chance, but 3 out of 8 will not cut it… and because the laws have been passed, we are forced to apply them for our own cities as well. It really pains me to tax my own people. Go and win – but for the people of Kanto, not the authorities. And maybe, with the fall of so many Gym Leaders, a new system can be set up."

"All right, best of luck to you at Victory Road and beyond. I see you have a Leaf Stone there, young man. You might want to use it now before things get messy at Victory Road."

Then two figures were seen through the glass ceiling of the battling arena – Moltres, and someone riding a Dragonite. Temperance dropped the Leaf Stone into the waiting Weepinbell, who immediately glowed with a white light. Before the minute was up, it had grown bigger – a Victreebel. Temperance hardly noticed, his eyes still focused on the legendary bird spewing flames, and the mighty dragon using all sorts of elemental attacks.

_Guess we're not needed after all… _

_The man leaned back in his chair, where the picture of Moltres emerging was added behind the one of Zapdos._

_"One more to go…"_


	8. Lorelei

PokeStones of the Dead - Chapter Seven

Lillette and Temperance left for Victory Road after bidding farewell to Giovanni, who had been more helpful he the two could have reasonably expected him to be. The pair of Dragonite and Moltres could still be seen in the sky, raiding attacks on the Dead. Temperance assumed that the entire Elite Four was there – Lorelei, Bruno, Agatha and Lance. Presumably, that was Lance on the Dragonite. As they got closer to the scene, Temperance could hear the faint sounds of the battle. The cries of Moltres energised both of them with a magical motivation, and they found the energy to run to Indigo, even as their legs cried for rest.

Moltres unleashed a fearsome Fire Spin that reached from its body to the ground, then turned and flew away, much like Zapdos at Lavender. Temperance knew that this was a sign that the battle was about to end, and he estimated that by the time he got there, the Elite Four would have taken care of the Dead. As usual, the two walked in silence. Lillette still hadn't spoken directly to him since passing the Leaf Stone over.

_Great… what did I do? Apart from forgetting to bathe the previous night, stuffing myself with food at the buffet, and making her wait for forty minutes downstairs while I took my own sweet time scrubbing in my room. Oh, shit… I guess all these conditions together count as adequate grounds for ignoring._

Victory Road was now visible. The Dead had all but vanished, leaving the Elite Four there. They were about to retire inside the building, but on seeing their approach, turned around and waited for them to reach Indigo. Each still left one of their Pokemon unrecalled – Dewgong for Lorelei, Steelix for Bruno, Gengar for Agatha and Dragonite for Lance. Temperance and Lillette got closer, and soon they were at the steps of the Plateau.

"So, you have arrived. We have had news that you would be coming here to challenge us, but you were expected one full day ago," Lance said, voice icy cold. There was no emotion in it at all, and Temperance banished the thought of asking him to make an exception for him and Lillette to access the historical records.

"We were delayed… an ambush at Mt. Moon."

Lance nodded, appearing to understand. "Well, if you wish to access the historical records, you have to become the Champion of Kanto. Technically, both of you cannot take on us at the same time. However, we have decided to give you a choice of whether to fight one-on-one, while the other one waits, in a 3v3 format. Or, you can choose a dual battle, with both of you using one Pokemon while we will use two."

"Can we have some time to discuss the matter? Also, what about the Dead at Victory Road?"

"That is acceptable. We will give you a period of time to come to a conclusion among yourselves. Regarding the Dead, they retreated as soon as Moltres appeared. I suspect that the broken PokeStones are connected by an underground network of passages. Also, something that you should know is that the PokeStone at Victory Road was never authorised to be built. There is no record of it at any of the meetings."

"What! That means that it must have been built here in secret, without the approval of the other Gym Leaders or the Elite Four?"

"Yes. However, as you probably know by now, not everyone can make these PokeStones. Each contains a small portion of a Gym Leader's spirit. That means that whoever made these…"

Lance did not complete his sentence, but his meaning was clear to both Temperance and Lillette. A Gym Leader, betraying his entire country by erecting secret PokeStones, acting as an outlet for the Dead? Where else had he placed these PokeStones? If they were his, there would be no need to steal other Gym Leaders' Pokemon. He could sacrifice his own living Pokemon at his leisure, allowing more Dead to emerge from these underground passages.

"Lillette… this is…"

"Never mind about that now. What is more important is that we must decide on the format. Once we find out the history of this, we can deal with that renegade Gym Leader at our leisure."

"All right, then it's settled. We will fight the Elite Four in a dual battle. Anyway, what I think is… Lt. Surge, Erica and Koga are obviously out, being dead. That leaves the five other Gym Leaders… all of which have no motive, and none are our primary suspect. We must stop worrying about his new turn of events, NOT reveal it over the radio, and become the Champions of Kanto."

Lillette took Temperance's hand again, sending shivers down his entire arm. "Let's go! For Kanto!"

_I really can't fathom the mind of that girl. Never mind, I'm not complaining._

"We will choose the double battle format."

Temperance and Lillette walked into the building, where they immediately made preparations to battle the Elite Four. To their surprise and delight, there was a Pokemon Centre and a Mart there, allowing Temperance to restock on his dwindling supply of Full Heals. Since the Lavender Battle, there had been simply no opportunity to buy more of them. He should have got some at Viridian, but his… irresponsibility… in personal hygiene had left no chance for that.

The entrance to the challenge lay in the distance, after a long corridor. Temperance engaged in conversation with Lillette before they went that way.

"Lorelei… what should we use against her? Dewgong and Lapras is a common choice of hers… but that was years ago. She might have strengthened her squad with Pokemon from Johto or Hoenn, though the latter is unlikely – I doubt the Elite Four would have time to train Pokemon from the newly discovered world enough for use in battle."

"No matter what, she will not deviate from her Ice Pokemon. Use Houndoom – you can test him out at the same time. I will be using Xatu."

Temperance and Lillette checked their Poke Balls, making sure their Pokemon were in tip-top condition, then entered the official arena, where the first battle lay surrounded with clean, clear ice. There was none of the slush that could be seen in natural conditions. Everything was as smooth as glass, and very beautiful in an abstract sense. However, it made the arena cold, not only for the Pokemon but for the trainers. In long sleeves and jeans, Lillette took the cold better than Temperance, who was clad in only a T-shirt and shorts. Before Temperance could voice his discomfort, Lorelei had already started talking.

"I shall repeat the format of this competition. Each side shall release two Pokemon combined. If a Pokemon faints, the side may release another Pokemon as a substitute. When the third Pokemon on a side is unable to battle, the other side is declared the winner. In the event of a draw, both sides shall choose one more Pokemon to represent it, and it will be a tiebreaker. Understood?"

The two nodded, and Lorelei held out two Poke Balls, as Lillette and Temperance took one each from their belts. "Then, let the battle begin!" said Lorelei, as both sides threw out their Poke Balls, revealing Houndoom and Xatu on one side, and Dewgong and Piloswine on the other.

_Piloswine… this is unexpected. We can still deal with it though; Xatu carries a type advantage over it… at the expense of a type disadvantage for Houndoom._

Temperance noticed that the ice of the arena was only about two inches thick, while below it lay freezing cold water. Temperance suspected that this was to give Dewgong an advantage in the arena. Sure enough, the Dewgong immediately used its head to burrow through the ice, and was now somewhere below them. Xatu responded by taking flight, far out of reach from any surprise attacks from below, and dove at Piloswine in a Drill Peck attack.

"Piloswine, Ice Beam!"

The Piloswine shot Ice Beam after Ice Beam at the Xatu, who dodged left and right, rather adding to the ice decorations around the arena. Just as about the Xatu was about to connect, Dewgong appeared from the ice, around the middle of the arena, and shot an Ice Beam from behind. Sandwiched between two Ice Beams, Xatu had nowhere to run.

"Houndoom, Flamethrower!"

Houndoom aimed at Dewgong's Ice Beam, then opened his mouth to breathe a jet of fire at it, virtually cancelling the attack out in a burst of steam. Nevertheless, Lillette had already ordered Xatu to pull back, and so Piloswine was unharmed. Dewgong disappeared beneath the ice again, no doubt hoping to catch them more off guard this time. Temperance was getting annoyed at this turtling, and decided to go for Piloswine in a surprise attack, one that Dewgong could not interrupt.

"Houndoom, Faint Attack!"

Houndoom disappeared, then appeared behind Piloswine, where the slow Pokemon had difficulty turning to deal with it. Slamming his body against the Ground Pokemon, Temperance succeeded in scoring the first hit of the match, though it was weak. Temperance was about to order a follow-up Crunch attack, but Dewgong appeared right next to him and used its head to cancel the attack, sending Houndoom skidding across the ice back to where Temperance was. Then Dewgong soared through the air, elegantly casting freezing water out of the arena depths in an awesome Surf attack. Xatu flew higher to dodge it easily, but Houndoom was right underneath the Surf, and there was no way of dodging it. Was their attempt to beat the Elite Four going to fall at the first hurdle?

The Surf hit Houndoom hard, causing the dog Pokemon to skid a long way across the ice, almost hitting its trainer. It was badly hurt, but not down yet. The Dewgong, meanwhile, dove back underneath the ice, out of sight and range of any attacks Temperance and Lillette might try to throw at it. Meanwhile, Piloswine used Earthquake, sending a fissure in the ice towards Houndoom.

_Apparently, they're leaving Xatu alone and going for Houndoom… both have attacks that are super effective against me, but fire beats both of them… let's create fireworks!_

"Houndoom, Fire Spin!"

A wall of fire appeared around Piloswine, not hitting it, but preventing it from being seen or using attacks. Dewgong emerged from the ice, and shot water at the fiery barrier, but it didn't get anywhere near it due to the presence of Xatu's own Barrier, sending the Water Gun crashing uselessly to the ground.

"Houndoom, Faint Attack!"

Houndoom appeared inside the whirlpool of fire, then first shot a scorching jet of fire at the mammoth, then finished by Crunching its body. Engulfed by the flames, then bitten hard by Houndoom, the Piloswine was knocked out, as the fire dissipated. However, Dewgong appeared next to the exhausted Houndoom, then Headbutted it. While weak, the Headbutt did enough to the damage Houndoom to cause it to faint.

"So, Lillette, who do we use now?"

"The Dewgong is too annoying. We have to freeze it so we can do some damage to it… you don't have any such thing, do you? Besides, the other Pokemon you have aren't exactly good to ice. Flygon would get totally pummelled, and Dodrio isn't that good here either. Its inability to fly would make it an easy target for Ice Beams."

Cloyster appeared out of Lorelei's third Poke Ball, joining Dewgong in the fight. Lillette then released Misdreavus, resuming the battle.

_Guess I'll have to leave the battle in the hands of her… time to sit back and relax, I suppose._

"Xatu, Psybeam!"

Xatu shot a Psybeam at the newly released Cloyster, who shot an Ice Beam in return. The two beams of energy met in an explosion of colour and power. The resulting explosion threw ice dust all over the battlefield, preventing both trainers from seeing their Pokemon fully. As Lorelei waited for the ice to clear, she saw Misdreavus appear next to her Cloyster, then Lick it, freezing it into immobility. Xatu was on hand to take advantage of the chance, proceeding to use Psychic to fling the stunned Cloyster across the room, landing on the hard ice painfully.

Dewgong appeared, using Icy Wind to sting the eyes of both trainer and Pokemon, then followed it up with Blizzard. Small but deadly pellets of ice reaching from the floor to the ceiling were shot at the unfortunate duo. Xatu quickly used Barrier to fend off the assault, but the force of the Blizzard was so strong that the Barrier buckled under the assault. Then, Cloyster, now recovered, used Spike Cannon to shoot sharp spikes that synergized perfectly with the Blizzard, crumpling the Barrier so much like rice paper.

_Back and forth… this looks like a match that would make any TV highlights all over the country._

Both Xatu and Misdreavus were hurt, when Dewgong appeared once again to renew the Blizzard. However, Lillette was ready for the move, and before Dewgong could attack again, Misdreavus used Mean Look on it, freezing its head above the ice. Xatu then shot a Psybeam directly at it, throwing it wholly out of the water and into Cloyster.

The room then became almost completely dark, and Lorelei was aware of a shadow circling her Pokemon, as what little light in the arena faded. Misdreavus then appeared for a brief moment, before fading right through Dewgong and Cloyster. The Night Shade was too much for Dewgong, as it slumped to the ice. The battle was now 2v1 in favour of Lillette. Things were looking good.

And indeed, both Xatu and Misdreavus working together in tandem were too much for the battered Cloyster. After a period of tormenting, where Xatu and Misdreavus dodged all of its Ice Beams and Spike Cannons with relative ease, it released all its energies in one shot towards Xatu, which proved to be its undoing, as it left Misdreavus free to approach close and use another Night Shade on it, causing it to faint. Xatu and Misdreavus circled the arena in sweet victory.

"Congratulations. You have defeated me." The voice was still without emotion, even in defeat. Lorelei gestured towards a door in the far end of the room, where it opened. "You have earned the right to go on." So saying, she turned away, leaving the two to proceed to the next Elite Four member.

"Lillette, that was awesome!"

There was no quiet acceptance of the praise. "You better repay me against Bruno. At least they've allowed us to heal our Pokemon between fights, instead of having our tired and injured Pokemon soldier on battle after battle. There were some complaints about Pokemon abuse…"

_Sigh._

_The necromancer laid another complete concoction on the round table, labelled with pictures of Zapdos and Moltres. He then took them both and walked towards an exit in the room. It was time to capture his prizes._


	9. Bruno

PokeStones of the Dead - Chapter Eight

As Temperance and Lillette went into the passage, the ice adorning the walls changed suddenly to rock. Clearly, Bruno lay in wait at the end of the passage. The two had time to discuss their tactics during the walk, after Lillette had threatened to put his head through the rock wall if Temperance made one more comment about her great performance against Lorelei.

"Ok, I'll just shut up… so, Bruno uses Rock and Fighting Pokemon, is that right? I'll just use Victreebel to kick his sorry ass –"

"I suspect those rocks are outdated. Bruno's only two Rock Pokemon then was Onixes… and we shouldn't have to use specific Pokemon to beat Onixes. He has probably evolved them to Steelixes, anyway, and Victreebel's attacks would probably just dent the strong armour of those Pokemon. I think his fighting Pokemon are more of a threat, especially Machamp."

"Ah… Dodrio, I suppose. I still can't handle Steelix, but at least I can defeat Machamp without many problems. You'll have to take Steelix?"

"Of course. At the worst, you can use Houndoom as the 3rd Pokemon. As for me, I can use Lapras to make use of Steelix's ground typing."

The corridor was longer than the one leading to Lorelei, and there was a silence for a while, Temperance's mouth still shut in fear of the image of his head slammed against a rock wall. Then Lillette uncharacteristically opened the conversation.

"Hey, there's something I thought you should know. I don't think Lillette is my real name."

Temperance, slow on the uptake as usual, stood rooted to the spot as his brain struggled to find the correct words to say. Lillette spared him the trouble by continuing on her own, or maybe she was just too engrossed in her thoughts to notice Temperance's reaction.

"As I said, I was abused as a child… and there was an accident. When I woke up, I was outside with no memory of who I was, except a history of vague horrific memories. I still get haunted by nightmares sometimes, but it was much worse then… I used to wake up every night on the streets, screaming and crying. So I joined the Kanto defence to take my mind off things. It's worked very well so far, I must say. When I registered, I just said my name was Lillette on the spot, it was accepted, and I've been using that name ever since."

"I won't be too modest by saying that I was considered one of the most talented soldiers in the history of Kanto. I rose quickly through the ranks, earned enough money to get a place of my own. I guess I'm pretty well off for someone that was tossed out at the age of thirteen with no food, money, and love. Here's a medal for bravery, by the way. I earned it a year ago when I faced a herd of rampaging Tauros against Fuchsia. Some Safari Zone accident…"

Temperance listened to this long speech with the same stoned expression on his face. Lillette's medal, silver and shiny, allowed him to gaze at his own reflection. Somehow, his brain managed to find the stupidest sentence that he could say.

"Well… why are you telling me all this?"

Temperance regretted the words as soon as they left his mouth, but Lillette's soft and unsure expression had already changed to one of hard fury, and she practically sprinted along the rest of the passage into the clearing where Bruno waited, having been alerted by the defeated Lorelei.

_Shit! What have I done!_

Temperance ran after her, but has his hand closed around her arm, at the end of the passage, she flung her free hand in a quick jab at his stomach, causing him to double over, wheezing.

"That's it! That is the last time I am EVER saying ANYTHING to you again, you totally insensitive bastard. I am only continuing because I can't turn back now. If you expect any cooperation in battle or out of it, you can go fly a kite, because I absolutely detest your guts. I do not give a damn what you say or do from this moment onwards, as long as it does NOT INVOLVE ME!"

And with that elegant parting shot, Lillette turned away from the still winded Temperance, and marched into the arena, where Bruno was standing, apparently not affected by the argument between the two partners.

"Are you two ready for battle? You can't forfeit at this stage, by the way. You'll have to face me, and if you win, you can go on to the third member."

Temperance had made his way to the arena, which was lined with rocks, but he noticed rivulets of steel running along the borders. It was now a certainty that a Steelix would be a member of Bruno's party.

Temperance walked to his position, where Bruno stood opposite him with fire in his eyes. Next to him, Lillette was looking at the ground, but even so Temperance was aware of the hatred and anger in her expression. This battle could not have been more difficult.

_Oh, crap… now I've royally pissed off Lillette, who was actually trying to be nice, and actually revealing her secrets to me. Like I was someone she trusted, both to keep a secret and to give her advice. Like she had finally found someone that she could reveal all these feelings, bottled inside for four years. And what do I do? I display all the sensitivity of a six-year old! She was beginning to accept me, and instead it's over before it has even begun. Brilliant, Temperance, simply brilliant._

Temperance felt for Dodrio's Poke Ball. He would have to carry this battle by himself, considering Lillette would probably throw the game. Sure enough, the Lapras did not appear, instead replaced by a Rhydon, weak to both Fighting and Steel. Hitmonlee and Steelix appeared at the opposite end of the arena.

"Let the battle begin!"

"Rhydon, Harden…"

Rhydon proceeded to simply act like a stone, hardening again and again. It would clearly not play any part in the battle, except to probably act as target practice for Hitmonlee's kicks. Bruno, on the other hand, started cautiously, Hitmonlee circling around the edge of the arena, looking for openings, while Steelix hurled a single rock all the way across the battlefield, looking for Dodrio.

"Dodrio, Sand-Attack!"

The arena's sandy arena, lined with rocks here and there, was perfect for Dodrio's move, and a few kicks with her small legs later, a cloud of sand covered the entire battlefield, causing the Rock Throw to go woefully wide. The sand also had other advantages. Hitmonlee's long range kicks would be almost useless, given the terrible visibility. This allowed Temperance to regroup and plan how he was going to fight a virtual 1v2.

Temperance came up with a makeshift plan, as Dodrio used Whirlwind to blow sand into Hitmonlee's eyes, rendering it unable to dodge the forthcoming Drill Peck from Dodrio. Just as Temperance was about to rejoice at drawing first blood, Steelix lumbered into Dodrio's path, protecting Hitmonlee from attack. Dodrio, going too fast, was unable to stop, and crashed her beak with full force into Steelix's impregnable body, doing more damage to herself than to Steelix.

Dodrio was still reeling from the impact when Steelix brought its tail around in a smashing blow, sending her right back where she came from. Dodrio went for Hitmonlee again, but once again Steelix blocked the blow, and only a quick dodge prevented Dodrio from being hit by the Iron Tail once more. Meanwhile, Hitmonlee was sniping its kicks from a distance, but Rhydon was far too hardened to take any lasting damage from such kicks.

_Steelix is the shield, while Hitmonlee is the bow… I have to find a way for Dodrio to damage Steelix! Ground… no. Fire… no. Water… no. Dodrio has only Normal and Flying attacks, damnit! Can I use brute force to break through all that steel? Not at my present state. If only Dodrio was aerial, gravity could add to the impact…_

Hitmonlee aimed a kick at Dodrio, narrowly missing its torso. This was getting dangerous. A kick on the fragile Dodrio would knock her out in her present injured state. He would have to think of something quickly… and then everything became crystal clear to him – Rhydon's hunched state, Dodrio's fast speed, and its ability to hover for a short period of time. There was a way to get Dodrio aerial.

"Dodrio, run up Rhydon's back! Lillette, I will still win this with your help, even if you don't give it to me willingly. If this is classified under activities involving you, I apologize!"

Lillette's head had been bowed since the start of the battle until now, but at these words, her head unwillingly snapped back up, in time to see Dodrio run at full speed off Rhydon's hunched back, then perfectly launching herself into the air. Dodging Steelix's Rock Throw easily, Dodrio rose higher and was now almost at the ceiling of the arena.

"Sky Attack!"

Dodrio dove down, her streamlined body making almost no sound as she manoeuvred through the air. Her ability to hover allowed her to dodge two kicks from Hitmonlee, diving straight for it.

As expected, Steelix tried to block the attack, but Dodrio was now as sharp as a war bolt and packing considerably more power behind it. She clove straight through the steel head of Steelix, doing critical damage to it and appearing right next to Hitmonlee, now defenceless. A Drill Peck and Wing Attack later, and both of Bruno's Pokemon lay unconscious on the ground.

"Thank you, Lillette! After we win Lance, you can go anywhere you wish to go! You've provided me with many beautiful memories, and I've slightly improved in dealing with people and emotions. You might want to know that I've always liked you, but you probably know that already."

Even as Machamp appeared at Bruno's end of the arena, Rhydon unfroze out of its hardened state, and walked next to Dodrio. Temperance looked at Lillette, her head still facing the ground, and was startled to see that the sand and rocks were now stained with tears.

Lillette wiped her eyes as she looked up, facing Temperance for the first time since the start of the battle. She said nothing, but nodded with a smile on her face, and the tears still shimmering in her eyes made her look positively beautiful. Rhydon and Dodrio stood as one, facing the solitary Machamp that now looked rather fragile when faced with two strong Pokemon.

"Rhydon, Horn Attack!"

"Dodrio, Drill Peck!"

The two voices sounded together, and Rhydon and Dodrio made their way to Machamp from the left and right respectively, then turned when they reached the walls of the arena, sharp objects in front of them. Crossing again and again, the letter X was formed as the two approached the Machamp at blinding speeds. Surely, even Bruno's Machamp could not withstand such an attack. Or so Temperance thought.

Two hands closed around each attacker, stopping both in their tracks. Though both pushed with all their might, Machamp easily stood its ground, then raised them above the ground as if they weighed nothing at all. Rhydon and Dodrio were hanging in the air by their horn and beak respectively, unable to do any damage to Machamp. The next moment, their heads clashed, and then they were dispatched with a Mega Punch to the body.

Dodrio was considerably worse off than Rhydon from the exchange. Rhydon's Rock Head protected it from much damage, but ended up doing lots of damage to Dodrio. Dodrio fell to the ground and did not get up. As Temperance returned her to her Poke Ball, Lillette's hand closed around hers containing Xatu, but did not release her immediately, instead looking to Temperance for confirmation. That was certainly a first.

Temperance shook his head. Xatu might have the clear type advantage, but there was no reason why he would do better than Dodrio in terms of attacking. It was true that he had access to Psychic attacks, but Machamp would be able to take those. He had to leave Machamp open for an attack. Temperance released Victreebel, as the 2v1 was renewed. They still were odds on to progress, but Machamp's display of power had showed that there was still some work to be done.

"Victreebel, Sludge Bomb!"

The move was just a test of Machamp's power. Victreebel lobbed a Sludge Bomb at Machamp without any real menace. Machamp passed with flying colors, one hand forming a Karate Chop, smashing the Sludge Bomb to bits. It was clear that this Machamp had ridiculous amounts of strength and resistance. However, almost all its power seemed to come from its hands. If Temperance could tie up his hands, he would be open to an attack from Rhydon. However, with four hands, it had more than enough hands to stop any attack from any other Pokemon.

Except Victreebel. She shot a Razor Leaf at Machamp, distracting it, and then released four vines at each of Machamp's hands, tying them up. Machamp was not to be beaten that easily, however, and even with its hands tied, it still exerted enough power to lift Victreebel up. Victreebel was barely holding on, when she ingrained herself into the ground, roots clinging on for all they were worth. This struggle lasted for some time, and Victreebel appeared to be losing.

Until Rhydon slammed into Machamp with all his strength, as Victreebel followed it up by shooting several Razor Leafs at Machamp's fallen body. Hands tied, Machamp was no match for Rhydon, and quickly succumbed to Rhydon's constant Stomping and Mega Kicks.

"The third stage awaits you. Proceed."

_Don't these people have any emotions at all? They really should take my name- wait, I have more important things to take care off._

Temperance and Lillette went into the third passageway, finding that the adornments to the walls changed once again. Mirrors now lined the walls, but there was a black light surrounding it, creating a ghostly scene. If the duo focused, they could see their reflection, but the black light cast a shadowy form behind them, almost as if they were being haunted by their own shadow. It was a cool piece of light trickery, that was for certain.

_Emotions… I've begun to realize how important they are. When I was at Hoenn owning people easily, there was no need for them. I was far superior to any of my opponents in the field, and therefore traveled alone. This sort of lifestyle for three years… I seem to have difficulty handling my expressions and feelings. At least Lillette helped me improve a bit – wait, what's the situation between me and her now? _

As the two walked on, the ghostly apparition behind them in the mirror followed suit. It would be creepy under any normal circumstances, but both were too engrossed in their own thoughts. They both had so much to say to each other, but just could not find the words. At least, that applied to Temperance. Lillette, on the other hand, knew exactly what she wanted to say, but was still unsure about the reaction she would get. She was, in a way, afraid that Temperance would just display complete ignorance of her words. Would she be able to take another emotional hit like that?

And so, the two walked on for a few minutes, each garnering up the courage to talk. Once both looked in the other's direction and opened their mouth as if to say something, but as they gazed into each other's eyes, both snapped shut their mouths. Since then, both were looking at the walls, seemingly not taking in the ghostly figure behind them.

Just as Temperance gave up on any conversation, and resigned himself to the long walk down the ghostly corridor, Lillette did something that would imprint itself in his memory forever.


	10. Agatha

PokeStones of the Dead - Chapter Nine

Temperance was pushed against the mirror wall as Lillette's hands linked around his back, her hands circled around him in a tight embrace. Some natural body instinct took over, as he encircled his own hands around her waist, drawing her close to him. They must have stayed like that for less than a minute, but as far as Temperance was concerned, it was for eternity. And even so, it was not enough.

"You know, in all my life, no one has ever said they liked me, in any way? I joined the defence, but there were only hard relationships there, cordial and robotic. It was better than anything I had ever got at home, but it was still very lonely. I've been waiting all my life for someone to say that…"

_How did you know that no one said they liked you? You lost your memory…_ was what Temperance would have said half an hour ago. Now, that part of his brain was banished into the background, as he just continued hugging Lillette, saying nothing. A few minutes passed, and then Lillette released him, prompting Temperance to do the same.

"Thank you. I like you too."

And no more words needed to be said. They continued down the corridor. The ghostly figures were still behind them, but as Temperance and Lillette linked hands, the floor could have fallen away, and they would still have continued walking, so deep were the extent of their thoughts and emotions. A small percent of Temperance's mind was telling him that Houndoom would do well against Agatha, but the rest of it was focused on Lillette.

The corridor came to an end. An hour ago, Temperance would never have nominated it for a romantic location. Now, it seemed like heaven in his eyes, and he wanted to remain in it with Lillette forever. But a woman was waiting in the arena, still standing upright despite her apparent very old age.

"You are anticipated. You are behind schedule. Begin with haste."

Temperance and Lillette snapped out of their dreams, and their hands parted as they made their way to the arena positions. Temperance noted that these positions were at the same positions as the previous two arenas, but the lighting and mirrors made it appear as it the arena stretched on infinitely behind them, and they would be in the middle of the battle. Only by focusing hard on an object could he banish this illusion from this mind.

The battle begun, with Houndoom and Scizor against Dusclops and Banette. Lillette was only vaguely familiar with them, having lived in Kanto all her life, but Temperance had gotten used to these Pokemon on his travels. Dusclops was a defensive monster, able to wall away most attacks. Banette, on the other hand, was more offensive-based. Sure enough, Banette started lobbing Shadow Balls from one end to the other. Most went woefully wide, but the rate of fire was fast enough to inconvenience the duo, as Scizor was forced to slash at one of them, taking minor damage from the impact.

The reply was instantaneous, as Houndoom ran at full speed towards Banette with a Crunch attack. As the jaws almost made contact, Banette disappeared, and in its place was Dusclops casting Imprison. Houndoom's jaws froze in midair, as Banette reappeared next to it, then used Spite on the frozen Pokemon. Temperance and Lillette could only watch helplessly as the teeth of the canine splintered. Clearly, there would be no more Crunching from now on. The Imprison faded, but not before Banette gave it a Shadow Ball in the face. The howl of pain from Houndoom chilled the ears of Temperance and his other Pokemon, even in their Poke Balls.

Scizor Silver Winded from afar, but the two ghosts were gone in a shadowy fog, and Temperance was aware of Banette concentrating on Scizor's learnt moves. Picking one of them, it stood aside for Dusclops to Torment Scizor, as his mind filled with terrible images, all involving the Silver Wind he had just used. Forced to the ground, then immediately Imprisoned within his mental faculties, he was virtually helpless. Houndoom's fangs were gone; it was coughing blood, and was not up to defending the trapped Scizor. Both could only watch as Banette finishing tightening its focus, before using Scizor's own move against him. While the ghost went straight through Scizor, as if it had no effect, Scizor had clearly taken a hit, and its pain was felt by both Temperance and Lillette. Both were winded. What sort of power was this?

As Banette gave the finishing blow to Scizor with a Shadow Ball, Lillette was already releasing Misdreavus. Surprised, the slower Dusclops could not avoid the Mean Look from Misdreavus. Then, it felt the pain experienced by Houndoom during that combination attack, as Houndoom felt his wounds lessen. His fangs grew back, though he was still hurt. As the Mean Look was about to expire, Misdreavus gave the frozen Dusclops a Confuse Ray to stop the insane combinations that the two could execute, then dodged Banette's Shadow Ball from distance.

Dusclops tried to Torment Misdreavus, but the Confuse Ray had addled its mind enough for it to Torment itself. Its own medicine used against it, Dusclops could do nothing against the rampaging Houndoom, fangs restored. Banette moved to intercept the attack, but Misdreavus stopped it with another Mean Look, and Houndoom was free to Crunch the offending Dusclops with full force. Only its strong natural defences allowed it to survive the attack. There was still some hope for the two yet.

Even as Houndoom sank his fangs into Dusclops, giving him an excuse to cheer, Temperance realised that the situation was still very bad. Both of the two Pokemon were alive, and Banette's only source of prior damage came from its own usage of Spite. Dusclops was more badly hurt, but together, the two could execute their combo over and over again. They had only managed to damage it because of quick thinking and reflexes by Lillette, catching the slower Dusclops unaware as the two retreated back.

_Imprison to trap the Pokemon, Spite to disable. If the move is unknown to the two ghosts, they Torment to torture, long enough for one of them to Mimic the move… then Imprison kicks in again. It's an invincible combo!_

Temperance, in despair, looked towards Lillette, only to see her looking directly at him, one finger on the Poke Ball that contained Scizor. The wink that followed showed that she had something up her sleeve. True, they were allowed one change of Pokemon per match. But even if Scizor could still battle, what good would it do? If he could not scratch the ghosts at full HP, why could he do so now? Temperance wondered if that move would only hasten the end. He just could not see what Lillette was thinking, and direct communication was not allowed during the third and fourth matches…

Then, in a brainwave, it came to him, almost as if Lillette had transferred it to his own mind using some strange telepathy. Temperance imagined her voice speaking inside his brain, but of course that was just wishful thinking. However, he knew what to do. He nodded to Lillette, and the two made their move.

"Houndoom, Foresight!"

Temperance's voice was joined by Lillette's on his left saying the same thing, as both Houndoom and Misdreavus created a shimmering barrier of rainbow energy in front of them. It seemed to have no visible effect, but the fog of shadow that was Banette and Dusclops turned solid, and the two shapes were clearly visible despite the distance. Temperance, satisfied that it was working, instantly withdrew Houndoom. This had to be done in perfect fast timing, before Agatha realised their stunt. If Dusclops managed to cast Haze, nullifying the Foresight, it was all over.

"Scizor, Reversal!"

Scizor emerged from Lillette's Poke Ball, clearly weak, but strong enough to extract vengeance. In its battered state, Reversal was at its strongest, and the Bug Pokemon sped towards the ghosts, the Foresight barrier allowing it to not only see, but attack, Agatha's ghosts. Both made emergency evades, but Dusclops, its speed letting it down again, took the full force of the Reversal from Scizor. It crumpled into shadow and fog, as it was withdrawn.

"Scizor, Reversal again!"

Scizor went for Banette next. Without Torment, it could not possibly stop Scizor, and it did not have Reversal in its arsenal, so again Imprison was out of the question. In desperation, Agatha ordered it to charge up a Focus Punch, as Scizor charged towards the ghost Pokemon. Banette finished charging the attack, and the two Pokemon clashed in a titanic battle of physical blows. The resulting explosion caused all three trainers to shield their eyes.

As the dust cleared, both Pokemon lay immobilised on the ground. Lillette withdrew Scizor, as Agatha did the same for Banette, and released Gengar. The Ghost Pokemon was clearly her strongest asset, and where it walked, the shadow and darkness seemed drawn to it as well. As the mirrors created endless copies of the Gengar, Lillette looked at Misdreavus, who was not a strong 1v1 fighter. Gengar, on the other hand, had access to a humongous variety of attacks, both physical and special. They had to use another strategy to overcome this new obstacle.

The two Ghost Pokemon circled each other, preparing for the initial skirmish. Down to an individual battle, that would be natural need for more caution than in a 2v2. Temperance noticed that Agatha's Gengar was not clear and translucent like those found in books and computer databases. Hers was shrouded in shadow, and indeed almost a source of darkness in itself. The outline of the Gengar's hands and feet were not clear, only the general shape distinguishing it from another Pokemon. While Temperance was taking this all in, Misdreavus had already cast Pain Split on it, evening the battle, at least where percentages were concerned.

The blob of shadow that was Agatha's Gengar suddenly erupted into life. A ball of shadow hurtled from it at a speed approaching terminal velocity, forcing Misdreavus to hurl herself to the ground to avoid it. Casting a Shadow Ball of her own, Misdreavus counterattacked, but another Shadow Ball from Gengar not only nullified it but also continued going, showing the gulf in power between the two attacks. Temperance then realised that the shadowy Gengar also rendered the trainers unable to notice the casting movement of its Shadow Balls, forcing Misdreavus to increase her reaction time.

"Misdreavus, Confuse Ray!"

An orange ray was summoned from Misdreavus' hands, going towards Gengar. To Temperance's surprise, Gengar made only the slightest of movements to avoid the ray, as it seemingly crashed through the shadow, but Gengar remained unscathed.

_So… the fog and shadow around it does not simply determine its form, but also affects a small area around the Gengar. This makes its evasion higher and hence decreases the accuracy of Lillette's attacks… Again, a very high level of battle proficiency shown. Clearly, they have much more experience under their belt that we can never hope to have._

Temperance realised, with a start, that there was no hope of a victory after all. Misdreavus had access to one attack that could do any damage to the opposition, but it was clearly not enough to stop the awesome power of the Dark Gengar. As a Thunderbolt illuminated the Gengar's grinning face briefly, then targeted Lillette's Misdreavus, a sense of hopelessness and despair rose in him. Was it all over?


	11. Lance

PokeStones of the Dead – Chapter Ten

The Thunderbolt was now arching towards Misdreavus, crackling in the eerie silence of the arena. Taking the full force of the blow, Misdreavus was flung back all the way to the trainer stand, then slumped back down to the ground. Temperance and Lillette were now only aware too well that Misdreavus had no way of overcoming Gengar via normal attacks. There would be only one way to take him down.

"Misdreavus, Perish Song!"

The smooth, beautiful song rang through the arena. Both Pokemon experienced an upwelling of emotions, the sadness of every note leading them further into the spell. Agatha told Gengar to back away from the source, but a Mean Look from Misdreavus took care of that order, and Gengar froze well within range of the deadly melody. Penetrating both Pokemon's aural systems, the song would no doubt cause both to faint within a short time.

Temperance knew that now the challenge was to stop Gengar from knocking out Misdreavus before the song took effect. If both were to faint at the same time, a draw would be declared, giving the team a lifeline – a sudden death match would occur to decide the winner. However, Misdreavus had a considerable lack of HP, and Gengar could possibly fit in 2 or 3 attacks before Perish Song took effect. It was up to Lillette to engineer her survival.

Gengar was now going all out attack, in a hope of taking Misdreavus down before the Perish count fell to 0, taking both out. First releasing a Thunderbolt, Gengar then dissolved into shadow for a Shadow Punch. Misdreavus was faced with both a speeding bolt of lightning and a Gengar that could not be seen.

"Misdreavus, Protect!"

A star barrier surrounded Misdreavus in the face of the two attacks, deflecting the Thunderbolt harmlessly into the air, while the Shadow Punch bounced off it. The barrier dissolved immediately, but the Perish Song was taking effect, and the last-ditch strategy would work if she could survive Gengar's final attack.

"Gengar, Psychic!"

Gengar, in what would be its last move of the battle, sent obscenely strong waves of psychic energy towards Misdreavus, expending all of its energy into this final attack. The waves spread over such a wide area that any hope of evasion would be futile, while Protect could not hope to succeed twice in a row. Temperance knew that if Misdreavus could survive this, there would be a real chance of winning the battle, but there seemed to be no way out… and indeed, the Psychic slammed into Misdreavus, practically ripping her non-corporeal form into half. To come so close, only to fail now… that was more painful than Temperance could have imagined.

Face covered, Temperance did not want to hear Agatha's proclamation of her victory, asking them to go back and start from the beginning while the Dead wrecked havoc on the world outside. There was simply no time left for them. The necromancer could be infecting every city in Kanto with the Dead, and then what were they going to do?

Somehow, Agatha wasn't speaking. Temperance uncovered his eyes, confusion over the delay overcoming his fear of what he would see. And what he saw was beyond his wildest dreams. Gengar had simply… gone, collapsing into the darkness and shadow like Misdreavus had previously done. And then Temperance noticed the dark thread, previously totally invisible in the darkness. Connecting the places where Misdreavus and Gengar had fallen, the thread was now visible and getting brighter. As the thread grew blindingly bright, before fading away, what Lillette had done came to Temperance in a flash of understanding. _Destiny Bond._

"Very well. The battle has ended in a draw. There will be a sudden death battle between one Pokemon on each side. The Pokemon cannot have appeared before in the battle. On a successful knockout, the winner will be decided."

Temperance's hand unconsciously touched each of his Poke Balls in turn. He hadn't used Flygon or Gyarados so far in any Elite Four battle. Houndoom had been used twice, and Victreebel and Dodrio had been used once. Contemplating his choice, Temperance realised that Agatha had a lack of Ghost Pokemon left. There were after all, very few Ghost Pokemon in existence.

Temperance's hand fell on Flygon, which he released onto the battlefield as Agatha released another Hoenn Pokemon. Apparently, the lack of Ghost Pokemon in both Kanto and Johto had forced Agatha to venture into the realm of Hoenn to replace her Golbat and Arbok with actual useful things. Sableye, its two eyes flashing, was summoned onto Agatha's side of the battlefield. This battle would decide their eligibility to go on to Lance.

_The man was walking on an island. More islands were around him, surrounded by the deep blue sea. Two phials of a strange yellow and red substance respectively were in his hands. At his back were scores upon scores of Dead. He placed the two phials at opposite ends of the island, at either side of a huge cave. The invasion – and his masterstroke – would soon begin._

Flygon and Sableye faced off as the battle officially began. Temperance comforted himself with the thought that Sableye was weaker than Gengar, at least where raw attack, defence and speed were concerned. However, one of this Pokemon's features was that it had no weaknesses. Its Ghost/Dark typing was unique, and effectively cancelled each other's weaknesses out. Therefore, there would be little strategy involving weak points here. A straight 1v1 battle was on the cards. Thanks to Lillette's miraculous salvation of a draw, he had a chance to bring out someone more proficient in battle. Flygon fitted the bill.

"Fire Blast!"

The wave of fire singed the air as it raced towards the stationary Sableye, who seemed to be oblivious to the oncoming attack. Suddenly, its eyes glowed red, and the Fire Blast stop in midair. _What?_ _That was a Mean Look… but Mean Look can only affect other Pokemon, not projectiles! Something is wrong… _And then the Fire Blast reflected back at its caster, which thankfully managed to evade the attack. Sableye's eyes were blue this time, signifying a Psychic attack. Again, it was different – usually Psychic manifested itself in the form of waves or a white aura around the caster. It appeared that Sableye's Mean Look and Psychic attacks were much stronger than usual, or they could work on projectile attacks in addition to on Pokemon.

Flygon flew overhead and performed a Rock Slide attack, but then Sableye split into two, both copies melding into the shadows of the arena. The rocks fell hard on where a copy had been, but when the dust cleared, both copies of Sableye were unhurt at the other end of the arena. Again, Temperance was shocked. _A standard Double Team… but combining that with a Baton Pass to an illusion? Just how pumped up is this guy? Usually, copies made by Double Team were not real. They could not make any impression on the battlefield or to Pokemon. But now… _

Flygon was now resorting to hefting rocks from afar, which Sableye either dodged easily or froze in midair and reflected back at him. Sableye seemed to have no attacking moves of its own, but that could be easily compensated with by its amazing defensive moves. Temperance was only too aware that if this sudden death match was too drawn, Agatha would be declared the winner. Sableye had ridiculous amounts of staying power, as far as projectile attacks were concerned. Melee attacks… it's a ghost!

"Flygon, Slash!"

Lillette, who had been grimly watching the battle from her station, turned to look at Temperance at this point, eyes wide. Surely, Temperance could not be serious?_ Melee attacks don't hit Ghosts, that's lesson number 1 for any trainer… had the heat and desperation of the battle got to him? Or does he have something up his sleeve…_

Flygon's claws emerged, as sharp as several razor blades and considerably faster. Flygon drew his hands close, and then raked it across the Sableye's torso. Obviously, there was no effect. Flygon zoomed straight through the Sableye as though it weren't there, and Sableye took the chance to cast a Psybeam at him – its first attacking move of the match. Flygon dodged it, however, and went back at Sableye in another Slash attack. The same result occurred, and the subsequent dodging of the Psybeam was laboured and almost resulted in failure.

_What is Temperance doing? He's just wearing Flygon out, and soon he will be too weak to dodge the Psybeams from Sableye… or, it can just cast Mean Look and freeze him in the air._

Flygon went back again, still gracefully turning 180 degrees despite his apparent weariness. The claws were directed at Sableye for a third time, but before it connected, it glowed blue. Lillette noticed the fury of the dragon in this attack, and knew that this was no ordinary slash. Sure enough, Sableye got hit by the power and speed of a bullet train, and was flung back like a rag doll. Flygon's claws still glowed blue, and Lillette understood what Temperance was doing all along: lower Sableye's guard with a few useless attacks, before changing the third slash into a Dragon Claw to damage Sableye.

Sableye got up, still not down yet. Now, its defensive tanking nature had gone, and was now creating copies of itself at a furious rate. As more and more copies emerged, Flygon tried using Fire Blast to stop the spawning, but a Mean Look stopped it once again, and now there were eight copies of Sableye on the battlefield. The real one could be any one of them, but even if Temperance were to get lucky and attack the real one with Dragon Claw, it could simply Baton Pass to an illusion to avoid the attack.

Flygon Dragon Clawed a random illusion, but it just disappeared in a puff of smoke, and another one took its place at the other end of the arena. Temperance, however, had seen one of the Sableye's eyes glow yellow for Double Team, and directed Flygon for a Dragon Claw on that image. Sure enough, it disappeared, but Flygon immediately shot a humongous Fire Blast that enveloped all the images.

When the dust cleared, there was only one Sableye left, weak and alone. Flygon's claws glowed blue again, and there would be only one outcome.

They had gone on to Lance.

_On Seafoam, the Dead were about to enter the caves where Articuno, the last legendary bird, presumably lay in rest until it felt the need to rise from its slumber. Then, an order came. Now was not yet the time. The timing for this had to be exactly right._

Lance presumably lay in wait at the end of the passage, dragon carvings adorning the walls. Temperance touched them, making out the various Pokemon depicted, including Gyarados, Dragonite and Kingdra. To Temperance's knowledge, the wall had not been updated for the Hoenn region, meaning that his Flygon, at least, would be a unique dragon in the upcoming fight. To his surprise, however, Temperance felt power in the carvings of the dragons on the wall, much like the PokeStones he had seen at the various cities earlier. This corridor also seemed wider and longer than the previous ones.

Temperance and Lillette, hand in hand, walked down the ornately decorated passageway. The weaknesses of Dragons were few and far between, but Ice was the most obvious one, and one that the pair planned to utilise. Temperance, however, fancied a Gyarados vs. Gyarados battle between him and Lance, a battle that would truly test his skills against the recognised best trainer in Kanto. Gyarados and Lapras were the natural choices against such a formidable team and trainer. Feeling the warmth and softness of Lillette's hand against one of his hands, and the strange sensation of the carved wall on the other, Temperance knew that haste was needed. Who knew what the Dead were up to outside – no outside communication was allowed when engaging in battle with the Elite Four.

The passageway ended, finally. What awaited them was an empty arena, but then Lance appeared, seemingly by magic, at his trainer's box, ready for battle. The final member of the Elite Four, as well as the mightiest, had arrived, cloak shimmering in the dim light of the arena. No special decorations for the arena this time – a plain earth floor, with small bodies of water at random locations. In short, a standard battling arena. Temperance took in the importance of this battle, for it stood for everything that they had fought for.

"Let the battle begin!"

Gyarados and Lapras against Gyarados and Aerodactyl. The rock-headed Pokemon was not a dragon _per se_, but it could be considered as one, according to mythology and appearance – it being similar to Charizard in this regard. Temperance noted its famous and almost legendary speed, second to very few in the world. Before he could examine it further, however, Lance's Gyarados sent an Earthquake towards the pair's two Pokemon, the force of the Ground-based skill shaking the arena even from the trainer's box.

"Gyarados, Earthquake!"

Temperance's own Gyarados responded with his own Earthquake, the two forces meeting each other head-on. At first, Temperance thought that neither could overcome the other, but then Lance's Aerodactyl flew down at blinding speeds and pounded the ground in its own Earthquake attack, adding force to the Earthquake on its side. Temperance's force was overcome, and the Earthquake edged towards his Gyarados, who was forced to take to the skies in its minimal flying abilities in order to avoid the critical attack. Meanwhile, Lillette's Lapras, underwater to avoid the Earthquake, rose and shot an Ice Beam at Aerodactyl, who dodged it with ease. The next Ice Beam was towards Gyarados, who dived into the water, causing the Ice Beam to freeze a random part of the arena wall.

Next thing Temperance knew, Gyarados was streaking towards Lapras in the water. While Gyarados' long length caused it to be slower than most Water Pokemon, Lapras was meant for transport, not agility, and so there was no chance of outrunning the Gyarados. Lillette ordered Lapras to get on land, and Temperance appreciated Misty's help in allowing Lapras to move as well as battle on previously impassable territory. Surfing out of the water, Lapras went high enough to reach Aerodactyl and Temperance' own Gyarados dived into the water, water level considerably lower, for a Crunch on Lance's Gyarados. Lapras dived off the Surf, the force of the water going for Aerodactyl, and then tried to headbutt Aerodactyl's body.

The two attacks on Lance occurred simultaneously. Both of them failed in spectacular fashion.

Gyarados felt his Crunch attack torn away with the force of the current, and as a whirlpool started to form in the water, rising up to the ceiling, Gyarados was thrown out of the water, unable to take the force of Lance's Twister attack. Aerodactyl, with a casual flick of its head, met Lapras' head with its own. There was no contest – Lapras felt as if she had struck a brick wall, and fell from her elevated position. Aerodactyl than flew at full speed, faster than the crashing water from the Surf, faster than Lapras' falling body, and followed the attack with a Wing Attack. Lapras was similarly thrown onto the arena floor, as Lance' two Pokemon, unharmed, regrouped for the second wave of attack.

"Gyarados, Taunt!"

Lance's Gyarados, who was in the process of Dragon Dancing, went into a frenzy, and went for its opposite number in a Wrap attack. Temperance commanded his own Gyarados to do the same, and then the two Gyarados were in a thrashing mess, each unable to get a clear advantage over the other. Meanwhile Lapras was still peppering Aerodactyl with Ice Beams, but they were more focused on the Gyarados show. Lillette and Lance both held back, knowing that an attack on the thrashing pair would be far too risky. Aerodactyl thus went for Lapras instead, streaking from 50 feet down to ground level in another Wing Attack. Lapras, stranded in the middle of nowhere, could not get below water to dodge the attack. Just as Aerodactyl dodged another Ice Beam from Lapras, and went for the kill, Lance's Gyarados was thrown off Temperance's, and got thrown between Aerodactyl and Lapras, the former just managing to pull up in time to prevent a friendly hit.

Lillette looked at Temperance in amazement. _His Gyarados was stronger than Lance's? Is he really that strong to be the champion of Kanto? I thought playing a dual battle format would have upset the rhythm of the Elite Four, used to playing 1v1… But it seems like he can do this on his own without me…_

_Zapdos opened its eyes. Moltres, on the other end of Kanto, did the same. Spreading their majestic wings, made of some combination of feathers and lightning and fire respectively, they headed to Seafoam. A mysterious force was calling them._


	12. The Champion of Kanto

PokeStones of the Dead – Chapter Eleven

Lance's Gyarados landed in a heap at the side of the arena, before picking itself back up again slowly. The impact had clearly hurt it, and Temperance could almost taste victory – his Gyarados had proven his strength in a 1v1 battle, with no outside interference. Surely, they would become the Champion of Kanto soon. And as Lillette's Lapras shot a Thunderbolt at the weakened Gyarados, Temperance could almost visualise it critically hitting Lance's Pokemon. One down!

Or so he thought until Aerodactyl flew in front of the Thunderbolt, taking the blow for its partner. Aerodactyl was not a Ground Pokemon, it was in fact weak to the attack – but it was more suited to take the attack than Gyarados, as it was uninjured, and Gyarados' typing offered it totally no resistance against lightning. _Why did Lance sacrifice so much HP from his Aerodactyl instead of letting Gyarados faint, and releasing Dragonite instead?_ As Lance's Gyarados recovered, and dived into the comparatively safer water, Aerodactyl flew back to the height of the ceiling, circling the arena. Lapras had returned to the water by now, and had to watch for attacks from both above and below.

Just as Temperance was about to order his Gyarados to enter the water to cover Lapras, Lance's Gyarados emerged from the water and used his own Taunt attack, causing Temperance's Gyarados to hover towards it in an attack. Temperance ordered a Wrap. _His Gyarados is weaker than mine, I won it in a straight fight earlier, and now he's FORCING a repeat of that earlier situation?_

Gyarados stopped hovering, and dropped its tail for the start of its Wrap attack – one that would surely end Gyarados' role in the battle. Before the blow could fall, however, the tables turned. Two multi-coloured beams hit Temperance's Gyarados squarely in the head, one from his opposite number, and one from Aerodactyl above. The two Hyper Beams hit Temperance's Gyarados in perfect tandem, and if that was not bad enough, the usual recharge time seemed to be much less than it should be. After Temperance's Gyarados hit the ground, knocked out, and Lapras shot a fatal Thunderbolt at the frozen, recharging Gyarados, Aerodactyl finished recharging and continued circling the arena. Two knocked out Gyarados were recalled.

_He'll obviously use his signature Pokemon Dragonite, so who should I use? Shall I keep the dragon battle going and use Flygon? Houndoom can't stand up to a Dragonite, I think… and I would really fancy something aerial against Lance's two aerial Pokemon. Being bombarded from the air is not very high on my priority list. Flygon, I guess._

Temperance proved to be right, as Lance indeed released Dragonite as Temperance released Flygon. Taking to the skies immediately, the release of the two dragons signified the resuming of the match. Lillette, knowing that the aerial battle would be tough against two of Lance's Pokemon, started spamming Ice Beams and Thunderbolts from the ground, not with much precision or accuracy, but rather with the intention to create enough chaos to stop the two Pokemon from coordinating a team attack on Flygon.

This did not stump Aerodactyl, however, as the prehistoric Pokemon used its speed and agility to nimbly dodge all the bolts. Its path was directly towards Flygon, wings spread in a Wing Attack. Temperance watched its approach with horror – he had seen the power of its Wing Attack on Lapras.

"Flygon, dodge, Dragon Claw!"

Flygon simply stopped flapping its wings, and dropped downwards, before retaliating with a Dragon Claw. Unfortunately, Aerodactyl again used its demigod-like speed and avoided the worst of the riposte, taking only minor damage. What was worse came after that. Preoccupied with Aerodactyl, neither Temperance nor Lillette noticed Dragonite tightening its focus, paving the way for Flygon, still following Aerodactyl's flight, to be hit squarely on the jaw by Dragonite. The power of Focus Punch, in addition to the naturally insanely high attack power of Lance's Pokemon, almost caused Flygon to black out instantly.

Lillette, in desperation, asked Lapras for a Surf attack, the waves once again carrying her up to the top of the arena. However, this mode of attack had previously caused near concussion from Aerodactyl's Rock Head. However, simply releasing a Thunderbolt or Ice Beam on the Surf would be a total waste of energy – the beam could be dodged easily. Decisions…

"Lapras, Thunderbolt!"

Lapras aimed her Thunderbolt not at Lance's Pokemon, but at the water, electrifying it. Aerodactyl, weak to both water and electric attacks, would certainly get knocked out if the attack hit. Lapras then jumped off the Surf, and spread the water out with a Psychic attack. The main power of this Surf would come from the electricity, not the force of the waves.

The electrified Surf arced across the arena, covering too much area to be simply dodged by Lance's Pokemon. Flygon, recovering, flew above Dragonite and used a Rock Slide attack, causing a second wave of projectiles from another direction. There was no way even the last member of the Elite Four could engineer a total escape from these two attacks, but the way he dealt with it was brilliant.

First, Dragonite put all its power into a single Ice Beam attack that spread throughout the Surf and froze the water solid. Electricity still crackling momentarily around the ice before discharging around the arena, harmless, Dragonite prevented Aerodactyl from taking the attack that would surely have rendered it unconscious. Then, Aerodactyl took the Rock Slide for its partner. _Oh, not again…_

Although Aerodactyl was now very close to fainting, it had done its job in protecting Dragonite – undoubtedly the trump card – and besides, all of Lance's Pokemon had a desperation attack in Hyper Beam. This was what it proceeded to do. Target: Flygon. The battle, which had a rosy outlook just moments before, had turned grave and was rapidly spiralling towards total disaster.

"_It is time. Start the invasion."_

Flygon was down for the count, the Hyper Beam totally crushing its resistance. Trying in vain to continue flapping its wings, Flygon's strength eventually failed, and crashed to the ground immobile. Lapras duly finished off the offending Aerodactyl, but the resulting 1v1 – Dragonite v Lapras – did not look good at all. Lapras was weary from the length of the battle, and had taken some nasty hits from Aerodactyl during its early stages. Dragonite, on the other hand, had near-legendary status as a Pokemon, was practically unhurt despite Flygon's and Lapras' exertions, and had access to near-ridiculous moves that ranged from Focus Punch to Fire Blast. With both strong physical and special attacks in its arsenal, Lapras' movepool, while also wide, could not hope to compete. Temperance, both of his Pokemon down, could now only watch as a helpless spectator as Lillette single-handedly faced the awe-inspiring Dragonite.

And Dragonite put on a show worthy of its status as Lance's best Pokemon. Weaving through the beams and bolts, putting up a Reflect to absorb a Psychic attack, before retaliating with a massive Thunder attack that shocked Lapras out of the water, Temperance realised the power of the Elite Four, and knew that it was over. To come so close, with one member – no, one Pokemon – left standing in their way, and they had failed – Dragonite now targeted Lapras, out of the water, cover blown, an easy target for any of its attacks, and the red shimmering ball of energy became bigger and bigger in Dragonite's mouth, and soon the Dragonbreath would fire and knock Lapras out, and they would be turned away to the cold world, where the smell of death would reek for evermore after the Dead had conquered. And then the arena shook, not from the battle, but by the entire Indigo Plateau shaking upon an external attack. And right on cue, Agatha rushed in, her speed surprising for one of her age.

"Lance, the Dead have attacked. Again. They are right outside, with even greater numbers than before. They control the land and air passages."

Dragonite stopped its attack halfway, and Lance emerged from the shadow of the battle box, drawing back his cloak, and asked for more information.

"The hole at Victory Road, despite our efforts to seal it, has been broken through once again. It would appear from their numbers that the Dead at the previously conquered cities must have been divided, with at least a third attacking here in full force. A third more, from what we can observe via scouts, remains at Celadon and Fuchsia, and the final third… have gone to Seafoam."

Temperance started, eyes wide and staring. Clearly, he had not expected this turn of events. The road to Seafoam, cast aside as impassable due to the presence of the third legendary bird Articuno, was now being attacked in full force. But surely, Articuno could emulate Zapdos and Moltres, and send the Dead back to the afterlife with its legendary powers?

"Articuno has indeed been drawn out, and was demolishing the armies of Dead with moderate effort. But… there has been an unexpected event. Zapdos and Moltres appeared, and starting clearing the waves of Dead easily, but then the latter two legendary birds froze, before attacking _Articuno_ instead of the Dead. Articuno is now simply fleeing from the combined attacks of the two Pokemon, while the Dead, their job as presumed decoys done, are retreating back to Fuchsia with only a few Dead surrounding the island arc to prevent intruders."

Temperance and Lillette now understood the full impact of their failure, and how deeply it would weigh. The evil that was controlling the Dead… had enough power to control not one but two legendary birds in his unknown quest. Now, they were leading Articuno in a deadly hunt across the ocean. Articuno would, eventually, fall, and then there would be nothing left to stop the necromancer and his minions to do… whatever they wanted to do. What was surprising was Lance suddenly looking at them with a keen expression, his face not showing any other emotion despite the arena crumbling around him. He said only a few words.

"These things… are they what you are fighting in your quest to defeat me in battle?"

Temperance could only nod in return. Lance, seeing it, hardened his face with a new resolve, and motioned towards the door at the other end of the arena. With a snap of his fingers, the door opened, revealing a dark passageway that had never been seen before by any other than the Elite Four. "Proceed."

Agatha looked horrified at Lance's action, and Temperance, despite his shock, deduced that this was one of the only times she had ever been at a loss for words in her entire life. "Lance… we are bound by law to not admit these who have not defeated us in our entirety. If you allow them through, your place as Elite Four Leader will be forfeit –"

Lance cut her off with a raise of his palm, signalling for silence. "Then it is forfeit. Let them go." He motioned towards the duo, then the door, again. "Proceed. We will hold the Dead off for you to conduct your research in the private chambers over there."

And so saying, he walked off with Dragonite, already inserting his Poke Balls into the healing machine which restored their condition. Agatha, motionless for a few seconds more, finally released Gengar and Banette and ran out of the arena to fight off the Dead who were ravaging the outer rooms of Indigo Plateau. But Temperance and Lillette did not see this. They were already rushing through the door at the far end, ignoring the dark, heading for the rooms of the Champion – and the key that would unlock the safety of Kanto from the Dead.


	13. Frozen Thaw

PokeStones of the Dead – Chapter Twelve

Temperance's hands found the light switch in the chamber the corridor had led to. Their eyes had grown used to the dark, after that absurdly pitch-black corridor they had to bypass in order to get to the rooms they were standing in now. The light switch flicked on, Temperance and Lillette squinted as their eyes got used to the change in brightness, and they saw a place that they would originally have paid a large sum of money to even see, much less live in.

The luxury in front of their eyes allowed both to forget the situation and simply gape at the mansion, no, palace, in front of them. From the crystal chandelier hanging from the high ceiling, to the set of armchairs in front of a 42 inch plasma LCD television, to the minibar at the corner where spirits and cocktails lined the tabletop, it was really a life of luxury that the Champion of Kanto enjoyed. And that was only the sitting room. Air-conditioning, turned on every minute of the day, chilled the room to a temperature that most would find uncomfortable, but Temperance and Lillette, having got over their amazement, were now actively searching for the room marked "Library" to care. Going through corridor after corridor, the duo got a glimpse of the life that the Champion had: a gymnasium that housed training machines for both the trainer and his Pokemon, rest quarters with beds and massage appliances that could only be described as overly comfortable, and a full battling arena which terrain could be changed at will.

Finally, Temperance found the library and pushed the sliding door aside, as they entered the room. Like every other room in these quarters, the room was fully carpeted. Bookshelves lined the walls as well as being positioned at strategic areas all around the room, and of course, with luxury in mind, comfy armchairs had been included so as to facilitate a comfortable reading experience. Temperance opted to stand. He rushed past the bookshelves, which were categorised: _Battling Strategy, Geography of Kanto, Pokemon inbreeding, Capturing Rare Pokemon…_ _ah, History of Kanto._

Scanning the bookshelves quickly, Temperance noted with satisfaction the organisation in chronological order. Going straight to the extreme end of the section, Temperance's glee faded as he saw almost a gross of books titled "_Ancient History of Kanto"_ or something to that effect. Sighing, he motioned to Lillette and took down a few books to gloss over. Time was running out, Articuno was being attacked by two legendary birds in an epic but imbalanced aerial battle, and the fate of the world lay on… how fast he could read books. The irony was not lost on Temperance as he dropped book after book of ancient history on the ground, eyes searching for anything involving the words "bloodline" or "necromancy".

_The necromancer stood alone in a dark corridor, watching the battle of the three legendary birds. He then turned his gaze away from what he was watching, to the final object of his breaking. He smirked. Soon, Articuno would also be under his control. _

_Articuno let loose with a ferocious Ice Beam, which was met by a Flamethrower from Moltres. The two projectiles exploded, showering slush all over the three legendary Pokemon. The Hail was still falling, created by Articuno's home advantage. Only the Hail, pelting the other two birds with small but deadly balls of ice, had prevented the battle from ending already. The crossfire of fire and lightning had been too much to handle for the defensive-minded Articuno. Fighting for its life, Articuno threw a Blizzard that added to the Hail and prepared itself for another combined attack._

_The Dead had taken the lobby of the Elite Four's quarters, and was now trying to break through into the first arena, where Lorelei's Pokemon were still holding the bottleneck of the corridor. Sharp and firm ice blocked the way to the first arena, maintained by her Lapras and Dewgong. Whenever the ice fell, Piloswine would send an Earthquake the Dead's way, sending them falling back for the ice to be renewed. Then the ice at the floor of the arena cracked, and undead Dugtrios emerged from the new hole – and new passageway – created._

Temperance started as the room he was in shook. The sound of stone crumbling could be heard in the distance. He sped up his search, hoping that in his haste, he had not missed out a crucial bit of information that was the answer to this hell he was experiencing. And then Lillette gave a start of surprise, and called Temperance to the book she was reading. After Temperance read it, he understood what they needed to do, and after quick consultation with Lillette, ran towards the balcony, despite a stumble or two on unknown objects in the dark, where they mounted their flying Pokemon and took the skies. The Dead had not conquered the Plateau so far in yet, and the skies were mercifully clear. On Flygon, Temperance flew close to Xatu next to him, took a roundabout way past the Dead attacking from the south, and headed southeast to Seafoam. On the way, the two thought of what they had just read, and the hope that lingered somewhere in their hearts.

_Celadon. Vermillion. Fuchsia. Mt. Moon. Victory Road. _

_Destroy the PokeStones; bring about the ancient evil that corrupts the afterlife, leading Pokemon to rise up from the grave as zombies once more._

_Three PokeStones to one deadly, mysterious combination potion, combining the deep power of the earth and its living beings that dwelled deep beneath the earth in every city._

_One potion to one legendary bird, enabling control over the slumbering guardians of the land that prevented chaos and death._

_When all three guardians are corrupted, the ancient evil reawakens fully, and transfers its power to the perpetrator of the crime. _

_This power – the stunning power – to have the ability to copy all the moves of all the Pokemon in the entire universe. To play a sick, twisted God, a human with the powers of all Pokemon. _

_And the power to stop this lies in our hands._

As the two Pokemon flew towards Seafoam, Temperance noticed the unmistakable drop in temperature. The autumn season had rendered the temperature relatively constant and comfortable. As Seafoam grew closer and closer, the temperature started going well below the status quo of 22 degrees and started approaching single digits. Temperance was shivering, bare arms not suited to take such temperatures. Bar a Fire Blast from Flygon, Temperance could do nothing about the cold, so he just shrunk back into his general silent and emotionless nature. The events that had transpired since his return to Kanto had caused his barrier against emotion to be taken down, but the silent, cold journey was a perfect place to put it up again. Temperance hardly noticed the cold, or the snow that was starting to fall, or the sounds of ferocious lightning, fire, and ice that was emanating from their destination. Only when Flygon and Xatu started lowering their altitude did Temperance snap out of his stupor, and prepared to jump into battle on the side of Articuno. Articuno could not fall. At least one of the three legendary guardians had to oversee the region and make sure the ancient evil from the earth did not rise up again. The two Pokemon landed a near distance from the battle, in order not to draw unnecessary attention from the Dead that were surround the island borders. Temperance prepared to release his Pokemon, hand on his Poke Balls. Then, he realised that something was missing from his finger that should always be there for the rest of his life. The ring – it was missing.

Temperance's eyes widened in a panic, all the moderation recovered from the long flight southeast lost in an instant. He recalled the stumble as they ran towards the balcony of Indigo Plateau, and realised in an instant that he must have dropped it then, the ring still overly large for his pre-fully-developed fingers. Temperance ignored the battle taking place not 100 metres away, and prepared to take flight again, heading back to the Plateau.

"What are you doing?"

Lillette had, obviously, noticed him getting back on Flygon, while she was lying low on Lapras, concealed by the blizzard and the explosive battle taking place. Temperance ignored her, continuing to instruct Flygon to fly back northwest to Indigo Plateau. Before Flygon flew off, he muttered the single word to Lillette: "Ring."

If Temperance had been expecting a horrified, sympathetic expression from Lillette or even accompaniment on the flight back, he was sorely mistaken. An Ice Beam from Lapras clipped Flygon's wings as it flew into the air, sending it right back where it came from. As Flygon finally regained control of its flight at sea level, Lillette jumped onto Flygon and started shaking him vigorously, eliminating the fury and accusations on the tip of his tongue.

"Idiot! What are you thinking? The Elite Four has been fighting their lives away to allow us to bypass the Dead blockade and arrive at Seafoam to stop this madness, and you want to fly back again? The Elite Four might be dead. They might have fallen just to preserve the two of us and save Kanto. And now you want to fly back again? Look over there!" she said, motioning towards the three birds. "Articuno is getting pummelled. Do you want to help it, save it from being killed and dumped into the ocean while the Dead reign supreme? Allow the evil we just researched about to rule the land, with the Dead as his servants? What will it help all the people in Kanto, the legendary birds, and yourself, if you are slain? The fact that you are even considering such a foolhardy course of action, much less taking it, shows that you have no skill to read the situation at hand and respond actively to it!"

Temperance's hands shook at Lillette's words. Deep in, his rational self knew that what she was saying was correct, but all his hands could feel now was the absence of the ring on his left hand, the last relic of his past, his parents, his boring but contented life. And he now felt irritated, angry, at Lillette who was trying to stop him.

"So, you want me to just give it up? Something that means the world to me, and has been the symbol of peace and justice I was fighting for? At Lavender? At Mt. Moon? All the battles against the Elite Four? That thing has been keeping me going, and is the last thing that roots me to my original life! That one of compassion, and love! Without it, who is with me? I will be alone, desolate, even in victory. Since you think little of such things, let's see how you feel about this –"

And with a quick snatch at Lillette's backpack, the silver medal of commendation awarded to her by the army fell into the freezing ocean, falling into some unknown cave of the depths. Temperance saw that Lillette's eyes were turned towards the spot where the medal fell, and was now still falling, until it would come to a rest on the sea bed to rust and remain there until the end of the world. Then, her eyes came back to meet Temperance's, but they were not smouldering with fury as Temperance had expected they would. They were filled with sadness, and tears.

"And so, there it goes. We have both lost our artifacts that are most precious to us. But why am I not angry? Why do I not feel like you, and demand that Lapras dive under to retrieve the medal? Because it would waste time. Time that could be spent winning this war. And I do not feel alone and without anyone to care for me, just because I have lost my most precious symbol of what I am fighting for. Because I know, that if we win, that I will have you. Not a medal, to be framed up and stared at in a house in Saffron, inhabited by one, but you."

And Lillette's lips met Temperance's, his cold, not from the weather, but from his emotions. And then they started to warm up, erasing his past, along with his hatred and fury. And Temperance felt what it was like to finally love someone, and how powerful the emotions he had been locking up for years were.


	14. Fire, Lightning, Ice

PokeStones of the Dead – Chapter Thirteen

Articuno was hit.

It had been dodging fire and lightning, twisting and turning in order to turn the blasts of flame and crackling bolts of electricity away into the ocean. Articuno was not even trying to fight back now, fatigue taking hold of its body. It might be legendary, but it was faced with two of its kin, and would eventually tire. And tire it did, as one Thunderbolt came too fast and too suddenly for Articuno to dodge or to deflect. Shocked into paralysis, Articuno's speed dropped like a stone falling through water. Moltres and Zapdos went for the kill, unleashing a combined burst of projectile attacks that combined to form a fiery bolt that melted the blizzard as it passed through the air. It travelled with all the speed of lightning, combined with the pure, raw power of fire. Articuno was still shaking off its paralysis, and the combination attack went closer. Then two beams came from the side to deflect the bolt away into the sky.

Lapras and Xatu then unleashed the same two beams again, the Ice Beam and Psybeam directed against the corrupted guardians of Kanto. As the beams were unleashed, a small figure, almost invisible in the blinding snow and roaring wind, leaped gracefully from Xatu to Lapras, and released more of her Pokemon at the same time. Scizor and Misdreavus took the battlefield as well, and the battle was now well and truly on. Lillette remembered the way that Zapdos and Moltres had cleared the Dead at Lavender and Victory Road respectively, while an entire host of Pokemon could not even stop the Dead from advancing. Now they were in alliance, working for the very evil they existed to combat. They were outnumbered, yes, but Lillette doubted her Pokemon could counter the two legendary birds effectively.

And Zapdos and Moltres reacted to the new enemies well, Zapdos' beak drilling a hole in Xatu, while Scizor had to be alert to stop Moltres from instantly killing him with a single Flamethrower. Lapras could not use Surf in these conditions – the two birds had far higher speed than her own Pokemon, and the Surf would probably do more damage to her own team that the enemies. The blizzard was affecting everyone adversely.

The battle was in a stalemate, with Zapdos and Moltres being able to dodge the attacks with relative ease, while there were too many on the other side for the two legendary birds to direct and focus their attacks effectively. Zapdos flew high, where it started Thundering everyone from its elevated position. The majestic thunder, used to wipe out the armies of Dead that were plaguing the land to great effect, was now being used against them. Lapras was hit, and Lillette was forced to jump on Xatu in order for Lapras to take cover underwater. Scizor took advantage of Zapdos' constant stationary casting, and tried to rise up to Metal Claw it and cause some damage, but all of a sudden a whirlwind of fire rose up from the sea, where it expanded and caused all of Lillette's Pokemon to back off. Thunder on one side, Fire Spin on the other, Lillette's Pokemon were literally helpless against the combined forces of the two legendary birds.

_Pathetic. You think your Pokemon can scratch the two legendary guardians of the land? Those that managed to contain the even more powerful evil that I will tap into soon? After I get Articuno! And then, you will see the true power of what I am scheming._

The necromancer must have been feeling pretty confident, until the two Hyper Beams combined from behind to send Zapdos down to the earth in a plummet. Temperance, lying in wait at the landing point in an ambush, was on Gyarados as Flygon flew overhead, both temporarily unable to move, but the damage was done. Zapdos hit Seafoam Islands, the force of the Hyper Beams carrying it there, against the force of its mighty wings. And right on cue, Articuno, regenerating its strength with some help from Lillette, rose up into battle again, and this time it was at full power. The blizzard stopped, then was redirected at the immobile Zapdos. Instant concussion.

The tables had truly turned now. Moltres, alone against a dozen angry Pokemon, was forced to flee for its life, and Temperance allowed himself a smile of triumph. They had won. Moltres would too fall, and the ancient evil in slumber could not awaken. Until the sky, overcast, snow falling incessantly, brightened. And now everyone could clearly see the same figure, cloaked in blood-red, standing at the far end of Seafoam. With a sweep of his hand, Zapdos revived and flew back in battle. But that was not all. Far worse was to come.

A crystal vial was raised, filled two-thirds of the way through. It was filled with… blood. Blood, so dark it was almost black. And Articuno seemed unsure of what it was doing, eyes drawn to the vial, even though it was not full. Temperance had no idea what was about to happen. _Another potion! But… no PokeStones have been destroyed. In fact, I have no idea where he got the sixth PokeStone to even form his second potion. Now… what is going on?_

The necromancer raised a bloody dagger, and Temperance suspected that dagger had just been used to draw the very blood that filled the vial. The vial was not a small test tube used in small experiments. It was wide, long, and from Temperance's estimates, could store at least 1.5 litres of blood. That meant 1 litre of blood had been drawn, by a dagger, from someone. Who was the unfortunate victim? Before Temperance could contemplate the matter further, the dagger was put to the necromancer's own skin, and then with a deliberate and hard slash, blood poured out of the necromancer's wrist, falling into the vial. The flow could not be stopped, and the vial gradually filled to the brim. The necromancer collapsed, and as if a spell had been broken, Temperance and Lillette rushed towards the fallen body, determined to uncover the identity of the mysterious mastermind behind the chaos in Kanto –

And three beams blasted the ground where they stood.

Temperance and Lillette were trapped in a maelstrom of hell. Wave after wave of fire, lightning and ice came at them, while their Pokemon desperately deflected the attacks away. All this while the two tried desperately to approach the necromancer's fallen body. The potion had taken effect, and Articuno was now fully in the spell of the necromancer, like its other two brethren. Temperance had his dagger out. He would get to the body, cut his throat, and then everything would end. Without a perpetrator, the evil residing in the earth could not transport its power to anyone, and would be forced to unleash its power on itself while it was still weak, practically committing suicide. It would be over if they could just reach that body, a few metres away. The birds would not kill them first; they would end it once and for all. And with a final dodging of a Ice Beam, throwing themselves on the ground next to the necromancer, Temperance drew back his hood and steadied his dagger.

Only to see the wounds on the necromancer, self-inflicted, heal themselves in front of his very eyes. The power was transferring. Recover had been used. The wounds, deep as to cut to the bone, sealed themselves. His eyes flickered open, and Temperance knew that he had to act fast. He plunged the dagger towards the red cloak, backstabbing the fallen villain, only to see the dagger splintered in his hands. The back of the necromancer was now as hard as granite. _Harden._

The necromancer flew up into the sky, propelled by nothing except his own force of will. Face still covered, he looked towards the guardians of Kanto that he had corrupted, and said in a terrible voice: "It is done! I am now the ruler of all power that exists in the land! Resistance is futile… and you shall now be killed by the guardians that were once revered, that once saved the day from the power that now resides inside me! I am still weak, if you can call this weak – there is still far more power to come!"

Zapdos, Moltres and Articuno resumed their assault, but not before Temperance took the naked blade on the ground, still stained with the blood of the necromancer, the same dagger that had taken the lives of others and had been used to make the final potion that had sealed Kanto's destiny. Flinging it at the necromancer, he scarcely expected it to work – he was hoping beyond hope – but it seemed like the cursed blade had some effect on the newly reincarnated necromancer. Cutting away the mask that covered his face, the dagger buried itself inside the necromancer's cheek – before the blade splintered into dust. Temperance then ran, ran far away from the three deadly birds, with dust and rubble erupting everywhere from the attacks. The necromancer flew off into the distance, and the two returned their Pokemon, and flew away, while the three birds gave chase. They knew what they had to do, knew that there was still one thread of hope left. And Temperance now knew where to go to save the day, because he HAD seen the necromancer's face. He knew who he was.

Lance.

_It was him. Him that allowed us to bypass him, despite our loss – he wanted to give us a sense of hope, a sense of hope that we could actually succeed. Why didn't he just turn us away? To stretch out his little game… he thinks that he would have no trouble fending off our assault. He was in wait all along, waiting for us to counter the two legends. The bastard!_

Temperance was now filled with an anger that knew no boundaries. He simply could not get over the betrayal, the false compassion and counsel that Lance had given them before he left to "help fight" the Dead attacking Indigo. A front as well. A decoy, meant to create a crisis somewhere, while the main attack was at the other end of Kanto. Red mist clouded his vision, and if Temperance had a tinge less self-control, he would have rushed through the three guardians after Lance. But he didn't, knowing that there would be a less suicidal way to achieve victory. All was not lost, and there was a way to utilise the ancient events of the past to win.

_Actually, we couldn't even beat him in a fair battle. Now… the battle is most certainly unfair._

Temperance purged the pessimism that still lay low under his determined self. The will to live was stronger than never before. The will to save Kanto, to get rid of the evil Dead, an overbearing sense of wanting it all to be over. And of course, the will to come out of everything unscathed, the will to live. With Lillette at his side.

Flygon and Xatu flew on back to Indigo Plateau. The sounds of pursuit from the three birds grew fainter, as the Pokemon understood the urgency of the situation and flew faster than they had ever done, leaving behind even the legends. While they approached Indigo at breakneck speed, Temperance deduced that the book had not mentioned that besides Gym Leaders, Elite Four members apparently also had the power of the bloodline. This was, obviously, how Lance had masterminded his evil and sadistic scheme.

Temperance and Lillette jumped back on the same balcony that they had flew off from two hours ago. Temperance was surprised to see that the Champion's chambers, at least at first sight, were undamaged. Perhaps, the Elite Four HAD managed to shake off the assault. Temperance and Lillette rushed through, looking for a secret door where Lance had carried out his activities, a secret chamber where the instruments of evil had been wielded to form the three potions needed to take away the power of the guardians that prevented such an event from happening ever again.

Temperance decided to exit the rooms of the Champion first, to communicate with the other Elite Four members while Lillette searched the rooms for hidden passageways. The dark corridor was still there, untainted by the destruction of the Dead. Temperance ran along, still blind from the change of lighting. And so he did not see the obstacles halfway, banged into them, and fell down. _What?_

Temperance saw two objects hanging from the ceiling, but he was still unable to discern their identities. Waiting for his eyes to adjust to the dark, Temperance blinked, vision focusing, and saw… bodies.

And they had previously belonged to the first two members of the Elite Four.


	15. Blood for the Binding

PokeStones of the Dead – Chapter Fourteen

Temperance was only then aware of the metallic taste of blood in his mouth, transferred there on contact with the suspended bodies of Lorelei and Bruno. Spitting the dark red liquid on the ground, Temperance nevertheless could not avert his gaze away from the two bodies hanging from the ceiling, an expression of surprise on their faces. Despite this, they remained proud in death, stoic and unafraid. Temperance noticed the blood all over them – their bodies had been cut in multiple places, no doubt for the potion that had doomed Articuno to servitude under Lance. Unable to hide his disgust, Temperance recoiled, retched, and proceeded to throw up all over the floor, the vomit forming a horrible combination with the bloodstains.

Lillette was searching for the door, trying to find the secret room containing the keys to the whole puzzle, and the tools to break the three legendary birds free of the spell of Lance. A secret trapdoor or passageway, leading to the area she so desperately seeked. Lillette knew she had to hurry. Lance obviously had not counted on the transfer of power from the evil buried in the earth to take a long period of time, and hence had not bothered sending minions to guard Indigo against her search. However, Lance still had access to many thousands of Dead in Celadon and Fuchsia. Their speed was slow, but Lillette had no doubt that soon the attack would come crashing on the walls of damaged Indigo. And searching for a hidden room in this absurdly big mansion was like looking for a needle in a haystack. There would be a need for a back-up plan, and she had just the right one. Releasing Xatu from her Poke Ball, Lillette gave him some instructions and then resumed her search.

Temperance picked himself off the floor, the taste of blood still fresh in his mouth. Trying to avert his gaze from the two bodies in front of him, Poke Balls missing, Temperance considered whether to return to the Champion's quarters to assist Lillette in finding the secret passageway that would lead them to their goal, or to proceed past the two blockades, hoping to find Agatha… or her body. Temperance weighed the two choices for an instant, before deciding on the latter course. Agatha could be injured, on the verge of death, and it was the least Temperance could do to find her and how she was. Also, only 3 sources of blood were needed to form a potion, so all three Elite Four members could not have been killed, for then Lance would not have needed to contribute his own blood to the potion. On these thoughts, Temperance gingerly pushed aside Lorelei and Bruno, after saying a silent prayer for their souls, and proceeded back into the arena where Temperance and Lillette had been defeated earlier.

Lillette was already bored of her job, and she had only finished searching the library. The reason was simple – there was just too much ground to carry. She was a soldier, for heaven's sake. Not someone that had to search behind every bookshelf, every book, and every page for a switch or lever that would open a secret door somewhere in these rooms. The Champion's… house, if you could call it a house, was perfect in times of peace, where people could then quietly enjoy the luxury everywhere. It was a nuisance when people were looking for something that could be hidden anywhere, and had a limited time frame to do it. Like now. Sighing, Lillette finally searched through the last couch in the library and moved on to the dining room. _Where is Temperance, anyway? Probably slacking off as usual…_

Temperance ran on, the conflicting needs of haste and care hampering his search for Agatha. Eyes scanning the massive arena, Temperance was looking 180 degrees in front of him, vision moving in a slow semicircle. Slow enough to almost fall into one of the pools scattered throughout the arena, resulting in soaked socks and a curse that reverberated throughout the entire arena. Temperance was only then aware of the total silence in the place, the loud splash created from the misstep almost deafening. Temperance was about to continue, when he saw someone lying along the passageway linking the third and fourth arenas. Actually, it was the mirrors of the third passageway that allowed Temperance to see it. _Agatha?_

No luck. Lillette had searched through room after room of everything a human being could realistically want in his entire life. From the dining room, to the communication centre, to the main hall, everything was perfect. Yet Lillette was slowly getting frustrated at the lack of progress as well as a sense of irritation at herself, knowing that her search had become less and less stringent with every failure she had got. Now standing at the door of the entertainment room, Lillette stared at a LCD television, covering an entire wall, a billiard table as well as several game machines, both Pokemon-related and those that were not so. More searching. The sound of Xatu returning interrupted her inner moaning for some time – at least he had succeeded in his mission.

Indeed, Agatha was slumped against the mirrored walls of the third passageway, eyes blank and staring. Fearing the worst, despite the lack of blood, Temperance frantically searched for a pulse, and was relieved to find the steady beat pressing against his fingers. _Just unconscious then._ Shaking Agatha wildly, Temperance finally saw the brown return to her eyes. A short round of questioning revealed that the Elite Four HAD fought off the Dead, and were returning to report to Lance, when Hyper Beams hit them in the back, courtesy of Lance's Pokemon. Lorelei and Bruno, unconscious immediately, were brutally massacred, while Agatha, only having suffered a glancing blow, managed to escape as far as the third corridor after sending out her Pokemon to fend the chasing Lance off. Eventually, Lance must have decided that he had more important things to do. _Like taking control of legendary birds._ Temperance helped Agatha up, and told her of the secret room hidden in the Champion's quarters. Then, she asked a very strange question: "Boy, have you been surprised enough times today?"

Lillette gave up. Short off totally dismantling the LCD television, there was nothing more she could do to find the trigger to reveal the secret that Lance had been harbouring all this while. _I need a break. Damn you, Temperance._ Lillette, resolve lost, looked around the room and found the billiard table still in a middle of a game. Just the last two balls left – the cue white and the black. Promising to find Temperance once she finished the game, Lillette took aim briefly with the chalked cue and fired the black sweetly into the far pocket. Before Lillette could even turn away, the billiard table sunk into the ground – no, the ground itself was sinking on hidden hydraulic hinges. Lillette, shocked for a moment into immobility, made the decision to jump on the table alone after making some preparations. Temperance could no doubt take care of himself.

Temperance pondered the question. Without doubt, yes. There had been enough shocks to kill a Golem throughout these wacky series of events. Before he could even answer, Agatha continued. "Well, let me give you one more."

And suddenly the gleam of a knife was in her hand, the flick blade sharp and cutting towards Temperance's throat.

Temperance cried out in pain, the dark-red liquid flowing from his maimed arm. The knife, slick with Temperance's blood, was withdrawn, and then brought forward in another stab, this time at Temperance's stomach. Unarmed, all Temperance could do was endeavour to dodge the knife again, like he had did for the first attack. Raising his arm in a block, Temperance had managed to avoid the certainly fatal blow to his throat in exchange for a bloody arm and a lot of pain. The second stab was more centralised and thus harder to dodge. Throwing himself to the ground, Temperance rolled his way to one of the pools of water in the previous arena, almost expecting the white-hot blade to plunge into his shoulder blades any moment. But Temperance managed to get to a pool, and jumped in without hesitation.

His hands were on his Poke Balls the moment he entered the relative safety of the water. He certainly could not hope to match Agatha in human combat – his only weapon was lying splintered on Seafoam. Finding Gyarados and Dodrio, Temperance pressed the release catch and was about to release the Pokemon that would give him a chance against this madness, when a roar from the depths below caught his attention. Two Dragonair flanking a Gyarados. _Lance! Or his Pokemon, anyway._ Suddenly, Agatha above seemed a better choice than the three dragons below. His left hand changing targets, Temperance released Victreebel and Houndoom instead, as he dived back into the arena, and the knife-wielding maniac.

Right arm still in agony, Temperance pulled himself out of the water, where Victreebel and Houndoom were already using Vine Whip and Fire Spin to keep the waterholes closed, so he could focus on Agatha without being hit by a Hyper Beam from the back. Retreating from the advancing Agatha, Temperance was pleased to see the pools sealed up, the Dragonair and Gyarados unable to emerge. Agatha still hadn't released her Pokemon… surely she wasn't planning to use the knife to personally cut him to bits?

"A show of faith," Agatha said, throwing her Poke Balls to the corner of the arena. "Return your Pokemon, and we can… have a friendly chat."

Lillette finally got off the table, after it had carried her far underground. To her surprise, the place was lit with a musty light, dim but adequate. Looking around the room, Lillette saw all sorts of assorted materials. Pictures, videos, books… all too far away for her close examination. However, unmistakable in a place of prominence, were the five PokeStones Lance had collected in his sick quest to free the evil residing dormant for ages. Moving towards the trophy table, the sound of hydraulic movement rang in Lillette's ears, and she wheeled around only to see the table move back up to the entertainment room, the billiard balls already rearranging themselves to the exact same position. _Guess I'm stuck here then. Let's hope Temperance can play billiards._

As Lillette moved around the nondescript room, the pictures, movies, and books could be seen to be all about the same topic the duo had researched earlier. Not to mention that there were movies of Lavender, Victory Road, and Seafoam. There would be time to examine the material here to see if there was anything they had missed, but for now, Lillette had to find the key, the main source of the controlling power, that was in this room. This would enable her to free Zapdos, Moltres, and Articuno from Lance's control and give her a chance against the power-imbued Lance. Unfortunately, she had no idea how to do just that. The PokeStones were just sitting there, and she was no necromancer – she obviously could not mutter a few cool-sounding incantations, and withdraw the power from the PokeStones. Then she spied a PC at the far end of the room, as well as a few pieces of paper on a table, loose. _Lance's notes?_

"Fool. You would tell me of your secret knowledge, totally giving up the one piece of information that made you useful? I was going to pretend to be your ally until you revealed the full extent of your plans, but I didn't expect it to be this soon. Honestly. You totally wasted Lance's Dragonite and Aerodactyl, who I commanded to circle Indigo. Never mind. I now see the complete and utter stupidity that has led you to take this course. Think, boy, think. Lance only collected five PokeStones, but two birds were controlled. Where did the sixth legendary artefact come from? My blood, maybe?"

"And so, now what? You're going to kill me with the Pokemon now temporarily trapped below the arena? Or simply cut me to pieces? What is this, punishment for my stupidity?"

"Correct."

The knife spun again, this time its wielder in a leaping slash that took her to Temperance. Sidestepping to his left, Temperance tried a reverse ankle-sweep that caught Agatha's leg and led her off-balance for a moment. Temperance considered making use of this to follow up, but as long as the knife was in her hand, hasty moves would be fatal. Temperance slowly unfastened a Poke Ball, and rolled it between one of the vines into the water. He had agreed not to use his own Pokemon to attack, but this would have a higher success rate, anyway.

Lillette read through Lance's notes, searching for any sign of how to reverse the spell binding the three birds. However, from what she could see, most of the writing was simply a summary of what she already knew. No luck there. Then, Lillette saw the fine print at the bottom. The power of the potions had to be tied to a base source of power close to the PokeStones – i.e. in this room. However, there was no guarantee that the objects had to be together, or in a certain form. Any inanimate object could be imbued with power from the necromancer and left in this room to fuel the potion's grip on Zapdos, Moltres and Articuno. Still having no idea where to look, Lillette decided to try the PC. Perhaps, there would be some indication of what the sources were, and how to destroy them.

Far away from Indigo, the Dead were slowly but surely moving towards the secret room.

Temperance couldn't keep avoiding the attacks for much longer. His legs were crying out in pain, and he was still not fully rested after the siege at Seafoam. The knife had missed by a smaller margin each time Agatha had stabbed or slashed with it, and Temperance knew he only had the energy for one or two more attempts before the knife found its target. He became aware could not just wait for his Pokemon to succeed. So, when Agatha performed a backhanded swing at Temperance's navel, Temperance made his move.

Diving at Agatha's legs, Temperance made use of the temporary loss of balanced caused from the attack, targeting below her centre of gravity. With a mighty pull, Agatha's balance gave, and she fell. Temperance went for the knife immediately, clawing at her hand in order to gain control of it. Stubborn fingers refused to let go, and the two were rolling in a tussle across the arena, both searching for the purchase on the only weapon that would end the fight permanently.

Finally, Temperance flicked the blade out of Agatha's hand. With his other hand, he tried to catch the flying knife… only for it to bounce off his fingertips, fly into one of the Fire Spins that Houndoom had made previously, and get instantly incinerated. Temperance almost lost his balance trying to change direction instead of following the knife to a fiery grave. In that crucial instant, Agatha picked herself off the ground, pushing Temperance towards the flaming tornado.


	16. Lance's Belief

PokeStones of the Dead – Chapter Fifteen

The heat was strong enough to scorch the hair from Temperance's eyebrows. As if his bloodied arm wasn't bad enough, his knees were so badly cut that he had to bite his lip about ten times trying to bend it. Not that those were the important things right now. Agatha was kicking Temperance towards the Fire Spin created by his own Houndoom, and he was in no shape to retaliate. _Lillette… still searching for the secret room that_ _I TOLD HER TO FIND. _Even if Temperance decided to break the rules at this point, his Poke Balls were far out of reach. Not a chance. The whirlwind of fire got nearer and nearer, and blisters were forming on Temperance's back.

Then, Lance's three Pokemon emerged from the water.

Temperance forced himself not to rejoice yet. They could be aiming for anyone, could be aiming for him and blast him into the fire for a horrible double death –

Three Hyper Beams formed, and struck Agatha in a blink of an eye. The fate that Temperance had been thinking would be his had changed its target. Pulverised and incinerated, not a good combination. Temperance finally dove into the water and recalled his own Gyarados. _Nice one. It was the activation of the Zubats at Mt. Moon that gave me the idea of trying this… I had nothing to lose at any rate. All natural Pokemon will rebel against the rise of the dark power – that's what the book said. All Dragonair and Gyarados needed were some information and some convincing._

Temperance retook all his Poke Balls, and returned to the Champion's rooms. _This place is a madhouse. I have to find Lillette…_

Lillette watched painfully as the PC slowly booted up, getting shamed by the speed of the PCs at the Pokemon Centres. Time was running out, and Temperance's absence didn't help matters. Lillette took a walk around the room while the PC loaded its internal memory, whirring like a decade-old machine… which it probably was. For the first time, Lillette noticed a blank slab of wall facing the place where the billiard table landed. Every other place was lined with shelves, tables, and stacks of videos, but only that one place was clear. It could be just that Lance hadn't got around to putting his stuff there yet, or… its purpose could be more sinister.

The PC beeped, signalling its readiness for use, and Lillette's thoughts stopped at that point, as she ran to the PC to try and find the three sources of the potions, so she could destroy them and free the three legendary birds from the control of Lance. The ancient mechanism seemed simple enough to operate, and Lillette had no difficulty entering the proper keystrokes to get her to the "My Documents" folder, then entered dir. What followed was a scrolling of files, lasting fully half a minute at blinding speeds before it stopped.

_680 Files – 1,982,512,524 bytes_

Lillette stared in disbelief, then slammed the desk with a roar of rage. More detailed searching and frustration. Where the hell was Temperance?

Temperance could not find Lillette. Then again, he wasn't really trying, just shouting her name at every doorway, for goodness' sake. After the battle with Agatha, he still had a useless right arm that caused him to wince in pain whenever it hit something or moved too fast. Also, he was completely exhausted. Only desperation was keeping him going now, searching for her. Temperance knew that her disappearance meant she had found the secret room, but annoyance at his inability to find any sign of where she had gone rather removed any pride in her discovery. Temperance, after a few minutes of searching through silent rooms devoid of life, finally hit jackpot with the entertainment room. To be fair, he had none of the detailed searching that Lillette had to do – the note was obvious pinned to the dartboard.

Reading it, Temperance immediately went to the billiard table, where the balls had magically reappeared at the exact same position despite Lillette's entering of the room just now. Taking a cue stick, Temperance steadied his shaking right arm, grimaced away the pain that followed, and hit the cue ball at the black.

The white ball bounced up, over the black ball, and out of the table. Temperance groaned and swore, remembering that he hadn't played billiards since his departure for Hoenn. And it was clearly showing. Retrieving the white ball, Temperance put it at its original position and prepared for another shot.

Lillette had searched through countless text files, finding nothing but backups of the notes scattered all over in hard copy. If she saw one more note announcing Zapdos' ability to control the thunderclouds from 200 miles away, and bring it to a specific spot in an instant, Articuno's power to summon a hailstorm and a blizzard that chilled the bones of all, and Moltres' ultimate skill of creating a burning fire inside its enemies, she would put a fist through the computer. How many times could Lance document the same thing, anyway? And she also saw things that made her skin crawl – Lance's eventual ultimate masterplan. Hopefully, they would never have to get to that stage, but she still made a mental note of what had to be done if Lance's plans really went that far. The details of Lance's notes far exceeded those of the library earlier, and Lillette was able to understand much more about the history of the conflict. However, she put that all aside, as she continued searching for the sources.

Sound is very different underground. The hollow sounds coming from the empty slab of wall sounded merely like the thumping of construction far away at Vermillion, where rebuilding was going on. Then Lillette realised that the sounds were getting closer, were far too loud for underground work being carried out a hundred miles away, and were accompanied by the hollow rattling breath that always followed a mass invasion of the Dead. And then she knew the purpose of the empty wall, why it was not obstructed by any objects. The entrance to the network of tunnels connecting the cities was right here. And of course, the entrance could be broken into. Poke Balls out in an instant, Rhydon and Scizor guarded the entrance against the Dead, while Lillette redoubled her efforts to find the three sources of the potion's power.

Temperance finally sunk the black ball into the pocket, after a dozen failed attempts. His thirteenth looked to be going way off as well, before the black ball bounced off three walls and went into the opposite pocket, not the one he was aiming for. _Oh well. Never mind._ The billiard table instantly sunk beneath the earth, and Temperance threw himself onto the table for his ride down below the earth, where the Dead were hammering away at the secret wall. Where Lillette's back was to the entrance to the secret room, only protected against a sudden backstab by the Dead by her vigilant Pokemon.

Lillette was barely half done with the list of files when the billiard table descended once more, carrying a very exhausted and bloody Temperance. Sliding off the table, Temperance could have lay on the ground and slept the night away – it was already dark outside, if Temperance and Lillette had bothered to take note of the time. However, the banging on the walls and Lillette's voice roused him from his slumber, and he reluctantly opened his eyes to take note of his surroundings. Lillette was furiously tapping on the keyboard, searching through text files and pictures with the utmost care. However, that did not stop her from shouting at Temperance at the same time about his prior absence, the Dead trying to get in from the underground tunnels, the lack of time, the host of files on the computer, and to Temperance, about life in general. _Shut up. I don't even have the strength to stand up, much less get into a shouting match with you._

Then the wall cracked right down the middle, the jagged crack splitting the rock into two halves. It would clearly not stand up to any more hardcore banging by the Dead outside. The sight and the sound infused more vitality in Temperance than if Lillette had been shouting at him for two hours continuously, and he summoned his inner reserves of stamina once more, preparing to fend off the attacking Dead. Pokemon out, he stood at the utmost attention, waiting for a hole in the wall to unleash his attack. Meanwhile, the tapping of the keyboard signalled the desperate search at the PC.

_Dragonair and Gyarados signalled to Aerodactyl and Dragonite outside the Plateau about the information they had just gotten. The five Pokemon, once under Lance, serving him faithfully, now split up, going to the five remaining Gym Leaders, informing them of the venue where the final battle would soon take place. The power of the Gym Leaders had been obviously weakened with three of their deaths, but united, and with the three legendary birds on their side, there was still hope. Meanwhile, Poke Balls at the fourth arena released their Pokemon on their own, revealing five ghosts whose previous master was now turned to ash. They floated to the entertainment room and through the floor, lending their strength to the two fighters, standing very exposed against an even bigger host of Dead._

_Dragonite was about to fly towards Cerulean, when it remembered that Lance had another Pokemon lying dormant – the reserve. It would do the job nicely, helping against the Dead at Indigo. Every little bit of help would be useful now. Yet that Pokemon was as powerful as Dragonite, and no little help against the Dead. From a nearby forest rose Salamence, previously unseen, now playing a vital role against the invaders. The backup of Pokemon, unlooked-for, would be a great help against the Dead, but against the new power that Lance now was – no one could say._

Banette, Dusclops, Sableye, and two Gengars appeared from the ceiling, unknown to Temperance and Lillette – the former fixated on the wall, the latter on the PC. Only when the ghosts started floating towards the wall did Temperance notice them. His first instinct was to attack, but Temperance remembered the betrayal of Lance's Pokemon, and assumed that Agatha's would do the same. The ghosts floated through the cracked wall, and from the new sounds outside, Temperance assumed they were totally beating up the surprised Dead. Temperance gave his silent thanks that there were no Ghost Pokemon in the ranks of the Dead, Lavender having not been taken, and Ghost Pokemon rarely ventured out of the cemetery.

Lillette saw what was happening out of the corner of her eye, but did not make any reaction save to welcome the extra time she had gained to search through the PC. Fingers still flying across the keyboard, the number of commands she entered would have put many typists to shame. File after file opened, not a single one escaping her gaze. Lillette cursed the fact that the files were all named randomly, meaning that there was no file helpfully named "SOURCES FOR LEGENDARY BIRD CONTROL" in big letters. Then, just as the ghosts were overwhelmed by the Dead across the wall, the element of surprise having been lost, and retreated bruised back into the safety of the room, Lillette struck gold.

Lance's diary entries, kept on disk. Lillette scrolled through the wall of text, hitting Ctrl-F, faltering for a while on finding there was no Apple key. Lamenting the usage of Windows over the Mac that was used in all Pokemon Centres and by the bulk of the population, Lillette nevertheless searched for the word "sources", returning one entry where the word had been used.

_My plan goes well. Two of the potions have already been created, and the third will soon be finished after the two people fighting outside reach my arena. They are stronger than I expected, but no matter – I have confidence in my ability to defeat them. And if they cannot beat me in fair battle, I will be totally safe when I have received the power that I seek. The Dead are surrounding Seafoam, and Articuno will soon be drawn out for the other two birds to weaken it for the third potion to take effect._

_Yet sometimes I feel guilty about what I am going to do. The four of us stuck together through thick and thin – I have known them since I started out as a Pokemon trainer, and we have shared weal and woe, surviving only through each other's comfort and encouragement. And we all know that Kanto is mired in bureaucracy. Nothing ever gets done. When was the last time the Gym Leaders made a decision? Since the PokeStones, about one initiative has been made – something about taxing the citizens for training use. Badges have not been given out in two years, because of all the policies preventing the people from training their Pokemon, while the Gym Leaders get steadily stronger. Yet the Elite Four, strongest trainers in Kanto, remain as figureheads according to the Constitution. _

_But enough of that. I have offered Lorelei and Bruno the chance to give me their blood willingly. I explained the entire scheme to them, why it was necessary, and why their donation would save Kanto. They refused to listen; they would have no part in asking ancient evil to end the problem once and for all. Now comes the decision: do I simply make them captive and remove some of their blood, or kill them? Kill, says my brain – they know too many of my secrets and might even fight against me after I have become what I want to become. My heart tells me that I should take the more humane route._

_What shall I do – but time is running out, I have to be at my arena. My Dead captains – hardy as a normal Pokemon, with the power and will of the Dead – shall lead the attack on Seafoam, from the back. They cannot fall, lest my potions go awry. As sources, they MUST survive. They will lend their strength and vigour to the other Dead, but they cannot take the frontlines despite their strength._

_And here the two come. I shall be there to crush them in battle._

Lillette turned from the PC to warn Temperance – just as a fist-sized hole formed in the wall, and Dead hands reached inside, clawing at the inside to enlarge it for their final victory – the defeat of the last hope for the living.

A quick glance around the room from Lillette confirmed her fears – this room was no natural defence against the attackers. It was wide open, with no hope of erecting any barricades to hold the Dead off. Too wide, too many paths for the Dead to go, once they breached the doorway. They had to stop the Dead from even entering the room, lest they fail utterly. Lillette still had no idea how to get back up to the Champion's quarters – she spied no switch that would bring the billiard table down again, and there seemed to be no stairway that would bring her up manually. There probably was another exit, but at the moment there was no time to search for it…

The door fell, revealing the same mass of numbers that was the Dead's main hope of any victory in battle. Most were, after all, just flesh and bone, held together by strands of sinew. In other words, they were easy pickings for any multi-targeting attack, but even the mightiest Earthquake or Silver Wind could be overcome by the hundreds of Dead that usually attacked. And there seemed to be even more here. All of Celadon and Fuchsia had been emptied, all for this final assault against Temperance and Lillette. Dead men did not tell tales, and whatever information they had obtained would be lost forever.


	17. Sources

PokeStones of the Dead – Chapter Sixteen

Temperance, after battles against the very same foes at Lavender and Mt.Moon, knew the methods to overcome the Dead. The same attacks – Flamethrower, Razor Leaf, Earthquake – were used, with the same result. Temperance was feeling pretty confident of his chances at overcoming the attack here. Although the Dead were more in numbers, they were forced to come in from a bottleneck passageway. As long as they did not breach the door, defending the room would be a relatively simple task. Even the cold, clammy breathing that caused immediate nausea had been fought off, due to their long exposure to it.

That was before the ground started rumbling, and Temperance was aware of a second front from underground. The Dead had opened another passageway to the room, which made the defence twice as hard. Lillette immediately motioned to Lapras to freeze the new hole, but a jet of flame punched through the ice, and the assault was renewed once more. They would have broken through, if not for a huge rock thrown down the passage by Rhydon, which crushed many Dead trying to come up. But the loss of vigil by Rhydon, originally guarding the door, led to further leaks in their delicate defence. A Vileplume at the door jumped on top of its counterparts, then shot its own Razor Leaf at the defending party. The attack hit Rhydon in the arm, and then deflected to ruin some tapes adorning the walls.

"Temperance! You take the door, I take the hole."

Temperance nodded his assent, and ordered a simultaneous Flamethrower from Houndoom and a Hyper Beam from Gyarados. So strong had Temperance's Gyarados become that the Hyper Beam simply carved through the first few targets standing in the doorway, only stopping after it destroyed fifteen zombies. The mass of zombies at the doorway momentarily cleared, and Temperance asked the ghosts – tended back to health by his potions – to venture down the passageway for another attack. Soon, Shadow Balls were being flung at the zombies at the rate of two a second, forcing the crowd back even more.

Lillette was having more trouble. Defending a hole that curved and twisted underground prevented her from using her customary beam attacks to keep the zombies at bay. She was limited to actual physical objects, like rocks and water, in order to slow the assault. Rhydon was not in the best of conditions, and Water Gun was not exactly a very powerful attack. Lillette's military mind thought of a plan, and she quickly tossed a Hyper Potion to Rhydon for the wound from the Razor Leaf to heal. Then, she ordered all the attacks to stop.

A grossly deformed head emerged from the tunnel, once belonging to a Raichu. Yet even the shade of orange, bright and cheerful, that defined Raichu's existence had been deformed – now it was dirty, with streaks of brown lining the orange. Whether the brown was just dirt or caked, dried blood, Lillette did not want to imagine. Then the head was blown off with the force of an Ice Beam and a Psybeam put together, throwing the Raichu through the dirt and back into the tunnel. However, the force of Raichu slamming back through the earth widened the tunnel, just enough for Lillette to launch the sortie.

Rhydon had been curling himself up into a ball, and once the tunnel widened enough to fit, the Rollout started. The Defence Curls executed beforehand had lent power to the move, and Rhydon had the initial force of gravity on its side. The Rollout got faster and more powerful with every passing second, and Rhydon sped through the tunnel, either pushing the unfortunate Dead back or simply trampling them underfoot. Rhydon sped through the entire tunnel, made beforehand by the Dead, and would have rose up into the passageway. Then a steel hand reached out and stopped Rhydon in its tracks.

Lillette gasped in surprise. Certainly there was no zombie in the ranks of the attacking force that could stop a Rhydon using Rollout? By right, even Water or Grass special attacks from a zombie would be deflected by the speed of the spinning Rhydon. Yet…

Before she could even complete her thoughts, another hand from the same unknown force gave an almighty punch to the immobilised Rhydon, sending him right back where he came from. Still rolling, but in the other direction, Rhydon went out through the tunnel and landed in a heap, widening the hole further. The hole was now wide enough to fit three Dead coming out at the same time. Lillette hurriedly examined Rhydon, who was amazingly knocked out in one blow from the steel Pokemon. Lillette used a Max Revive on him, but not before she took note of the fist-shaped mark on Rhydon's back. _Meteor Mash._

"Temperance! The Dead captains are here! Metagross, at least, is one of them –"

Temperance didn't reply, because a sand storm had started blowing in the tunnel. Either one of the Dead Pokemon had cast Sandstorm in the passageway, which made no sense, considering it would hurt them far more than it helped their Rock and Ground Pokemon – or he had found another one of the Dead captains. Tyranitar, king of all Dark Pokemon. And it proved its power, sending an Earthquake hurtling through the tunnel and slamming some of the Ghosts back into the room. Those unaffected by the Earthquake due to its trait quickly retreated.

The Earthquake's power reverberated all around the small room, knocking most of the Pokemon off their feet. Temperance, standing the closest to the passageway, felt the brunt of the blast. Flying backwards against a shelf full of books, Temperance felt his right arm get crushed between his own body and the wooden shelf. Already injured from the fight with Agatha, the arm went limp, and Temperance lost all feeling in that arm. A quick wiggle of his fingers calmed his fear of a broken arm, but at the least, it was very badly sprained.

Temperance then found that the shelf, knocked over, revealed a door that in turn led to a stairway leading up. Signalling to Lillette, the two returned their Pokemon and ran up the staircase in full retreat. Temperance needed to get to a PokeCentre in any case to treat his injured arm. Running pell-mell up the stairs, the two ignored the Dead that flooded the room and up the staircase with them. The Dead captains had defeated their initial resistance.

The Dead were in hot pursuit. Dragging their deformed bodies up the stairs, the slow pushed along by those at the back, the Dead were making steady progress up the stairs. While their speed could not compare to that of Temperance and Lillette, the miniscule time gained by retreating – or running away – was definitely not enough for any plan to defeat the swarm of Dead coming up the stairs. Not to mention that, as living humans, their stamina was limited, as compared to the Dead – their will would remain until Lance, far away, decided that they had no further use. Already, Temperance could feel the burning in his legs. Turning a corner, he peeked up and saw that they were only two-thirds of the way through.

The Dead were about eight metres below the running pair, a sandstorm following them as they chased Temperance and Lillette – courtesy of the captain Tyranitar. As she ran, Lillette pondered why Lance would risk sending his sources to the frontline, when their defeat would mean the liberation of Zapdos and the other two, and thus giving them a hope to defeat the newly-powered necromancer. _Let me see. Lance must have known we would access his secret room to find out where his sources were. Yet he would have no way of finding out whether we did get the required information. Perhaps, he decided to end the battle fast, sending his most powerful incarnations, so that the break-in from the tunnels would be complete in the shortest period of time possible. Or, even if we did get the information, he was confident that his Dead captains could defeat us._

The third possibility flashed across Lillette's mind, but it did not bear thinking about. _Or, he has already become so powerful that even the release of the three legendary birds will not halt his rise._

The pair was almost at the door. Made of clear glass, it allowed Temperance to see where it led to far before he even reached it – the kitchen. The kitchen walls were made of panels of pure glass, each with beautiful paintings on them. One of them must have served as an alternative entrance to the secret room. The door was now only metres away. And then came a terrible roar from beneath them, followed by the awful sound of the concrete and wood of the staircase crumbling away. The beating of wings was unmistakable – Dragonite, the final Dead captain, Lance's favourite Pokemon turned into a grisly manifestation of its former self – rose up from far below, and intercepted their path to the escape door.

"Dodrio, Drill Peck!"

The three-headed flying Pokemon was out before Dragonite could land in front of them, and attacked the zombie fiercely. While that sort of attack would have dismembered any normal Dead Pokemon, this was most certainly not a normal zombie. As hardy as a normal Dragonite, yet with the will and never-ending spirit that came from Lance miles away from Indigo, the Dragonite was only forced back from Dodrio's attacks. Rearing itself up to its full height, Dragonite retaliated with a Thunderbolt at Dodrio, and only her quick reflexes, jumping onto the railing, saved her from being instantly knocked out. The Thunderbolt rebounded off the concrete and fizzled harmlessly onto the walls.

Dragonite was blocking the entire passageway, while the Dead caught up behind to kill them. And it might have succeeded, if not for the fact that Misdreavus was out to lend assistance. A Mean Look from her froze Dragonite in the casting motions of a Dragonbreath. Temperance was about to ask Dodrio to attack Dragonite once more, but Lillette stopped him and pushed past the temporarily immobilised Dragonite, earning an arm crawling with maggots as a reward. Brushing them off, Lillette and Temperance continued running away from the army of Dead, now very close after the delay at the final landing.

Yet there could be no stopping, or even slowing down. Lillette had locked the kitchen's secret door, and the kitchen door itself, as they ran from the Champion's apartments, but the doors were all made of clear glass. Whether toughened or not, the two could not say, but they knew that with five hundred Dead banging on them, even the toughest glass would not continue standing for much longer.

"Where are we running to, anyway?"

Temperance's question had just come to his mind after about ten minutes of mindless running from the secret room. The arrival of the three Dead captains, without all the weaknesses of regular Dead, had shaken his will and thrown him into near-madness. Only the run all the way to the initial lobby where challengers waited for the Elite Four managed to clear Temperance's heat-oppressed brain.

"Well, you sure took your time thinking of that question! We are running all the way to Viridian City. I know you expect me to do everything important for you, so I am simply doing my duty. I had previously instructed Giovanni to construct defences at his city – if we flew from Indigo, pursued by the Dead. Presumably, it will be rather more defensible than being surrounded without backup in the wide open arena of Indigo. Comprehend?"

_Always two steps ahead. Well, if my legs can last till there, I'm sure her plan would be a brilliant one. I don't think she considered being slashed by a knife, being thrown across the room from an Earthquake passing by, and now having a limp arm when she instructed Giovanni before she started looking for the secret room. And must she act so high-and-mighty all the damn time? _

Sounds backwards snapped Temperance out of his moody attitude, and began to pay full attention to his surroundings once again. The two were out of the Plateau building, but a glance backward showed that the Dragonite was in full pursuit, easily going three times as fast as the pair. And there was still the Plateau – Victory Road – to descend before they would reach Viridian, with backup and relative safety compared to where they were now.

Dragonite was out of the building as well, and now would be able to fly and show its full speed. Even as Temperance and Lillette sprinted down Victory Road, the downhill slope adding to their speed, they saw Dragonite take to the air not twenty metres behind them, and casually overtook them with no effort at all. Still running, mind too confused to even consider giving up hope, the two saw Dragonite position itself ten metres above them, before it dived down rapidly like a bullet. The very heavy and deadly bullet shot down, the angle perfectly calibrated. They now had two choices - maintaining their speed to get slashed by its mighty claws as they ran right into it, or pull back for it to blast them away with elemental attacks. Even as Temperance fumbled at his belt for his Poke Balls, he could not foresee a way out of this mess – the rest of the Dead, marshalled by the other two captains, were on their way.

Dragonite pulled up in front of them way before they even had a chance to release their Pokemon from their Poke Balls. The familiar sight of Dragonite charging up attacks from its mouth met their eyes, and Temperance felt that it would be the last thing he would ever see. Even as he bent his knees, preparing to throw himself to the side in a bid to avoid the Flamethrower that would no doubt kill and cremate his corpse in one fell swoop, he knew that he would be too slow.

Then Dragonite was thrown off, an unknown body slamming into it at full speed from the air and crushing it against the hillside. The Flamethrower was charged up too long to be simply cancelled, was released right against the ground, and rebounded back against its casters' face. Even the toughened skin of the zombie Dragonite could not take such a blow, and its head was blown off, scorched by the force of its own Flamethrower. Yet it continued fighting. Fighting back against its attacker, Dragonite fought gamely with its wings and tail, but without access to its elemental attacks it really had no chance against its rival at Hoenn. Salamence, one of the most powerful non-legendary Pokemon in existence, easily dispatched the first Dead captain with a Dragon Claw, ripping its torso into two. The horrible sight of the decomposed flesh being torn apart, sending all the insects it played host to far away, would have caused nightmares for many a trainer in Kanto.

Temperance and Lillette took to the skies. With the Dead's only strong Flying Pokemon dismembered, the sky would be a much safer place to be, fending off weak birds, than on the ground against the two remaining captains of Tyranitar and Metagross. On Xatu and Flygon, the two were also to increase the speed of their descent to Viridian. Salamence stayed behind to fend off the rampaging Dead behind, along with the ghosts. However, it was clear than even the mightiest of the Elite Four's Pokemon could not fend off five hundred Dead and two hardy captains. The main fight would have to take place at Viridian City.

Which was now visible in the distance. Lillette noticed with delight that the barricades HAD been set up. There would be a very good chance of holding the fort at the city. Lillette was tempted to simply rush into the mass of Dead and deliver their most powerful attacks on the Dead captains, freeing all three legendary birds, but it was far too risky. Also, she was aware that destroying only one source – like how Salamence had killed Dragonite earlier – would not free one bird on its own. The three legendary birds were tied together. Once all three sources were down, the legendary birds would be free.

_Dragonite finished its job. A quick check with the other Pokemon once belonging to Lance showed that all the Gym Leaders were now on high alert, ready for action. They were all training their Pokemon for the final battle, but that was only the secondary priority. The main priority was to get back their powers that had been hidden from them. Their bloodline might have been watered, and their ancient power forgotten, but it was there, ready for use. True, the loss of three Gym Leaders would make the job much harder, but the power of the evil inhabiting the body of Lance had been frozen for many a century. As long as the evil was not allowed to feed on the souls of the dead it had killed, there would be a chance._

Temperance and Lillette landed. Giovanni was there to meet them, his various Earth Pokemon at the ready. Gazing towards Victory Road, where Salamence and the ghosts were raining elemental attacks down on the Dead, Temperance knew that there would be a need to offer assistance. And there was resistance from the Dead – marshalled by the captains at the scene, the Dead were much more organised than usual. An array of Ice Beams moved in the opposite direction, clearly fired in formation. Catching Salamence off-guard, two of the Ice Beams would have hit, if not for the ghosts firing off Flamethrowers to nullify the attacks.

"Lillette, call a retreat. I'll organise the things here…"

Then Temperance collapsed. He had not slept since the previous night at Viridian, and in that short space of 20 hours, he had defeated three Elite Four members, lost narrowly to one, made a long flight to Seafoam and back – after the drama at Seafoam itself. Then he had gotten slashed on the arm, almost got incinerated by his own Houndoom's Fire Spin, and fought off the Dead for an hour. Pure adrenaline had been keeping him active for the last few events, but even that too was draining away now that he was finally safe, behind well-fortified barricades and the mighty Pokemon of Giovanni.

"Temperance!" Lillette was at his side in an instant, and then turned her head to the battle at Victory Road. Salamence had just taken a hit, and Lillette was torn between the importance of the two fronts. Before she could make a decision, Giovanni made it for her.

"Go take care of your friend. We shall hold the city. The defences are strong enough, thanks to your warning… and Dragonair's. Besides, I have a lot of backup."

Lillette followed his hand gesture to the greenery of Viridian City, where she saw, for the first time, the reappearance of Team Rocket for two years. All clad in the trademark uniform of Team Rocket, the soldiers' strength could not be counted, as they blended in with the forest very well. However, from a quick count by Lillette, they numbered no less than four-fifths of a hundred.

"So, relax. You and your friend have earned your rest. We can hold Viridian for a week if need be. Not to mention that the Gym Leaders have all been informed of the situation by Lance's defecting Pokemon. I shall lead the defence. Salamence has been told to retreat already. Go and take care of your friend – the Pokemon Centre would be well-equipped for the task. Go!"

Hearing this, Lillette hastened to transport Temperance to the Pokemon Centre nearby. Obviously, she could not support his entire weight alone, so Giovanni helped carry Temperance to the door, where he bade Lillette goodbye. After a last turn towards the battle that would take place within the next five minutes, Lillette checked Temperance into a private ward. The Pokemon Centres in Kanto were also well-stocked with human medicines. After a short time, the nurse had Temperance's injured arm disinfected and bandaged. Temperance's and Lillette's minor cuts were also treated, and then they were ordered to rest for at least six hours.

The ward door closed, and the soundproof walls of the Pokemon Centre separated Temperance and Lillette from the raging battle outside. Swallowed in the darkness of the ward, Temperance sank into his comfortable bed, cut himself off from the worry and care that came with every battle, and allowed himself to sink into a deep sleep.

_Misty had received the message from Aerodactyl and prepared for it accordingly. Would the others do the same?_


	18. Visions of Despair

PokeStones of the Dead – Chapter Seventeen

The minutes ticked on, and Temperance was still out cold, his brain shutting off all external stimuli in exchange for maximum rest. Neither him nor Lillette in peaceful slumber in the bed next to him saw Giovanni's Persian jump onto Tyranitar's head outside and tear out its eyes. Nor did they see Giovanni himself diving away at full stretch to avoid a Stomp by the enraged Tyranitar. Nor a Rocket's Sudowoodo managing to take a Meteor Mash from Metagross without being knocked out, then Countering its blow, sending it flying back into its Dead with a thump. The cool air-conditioning and the fluffy pillows added to the bliss they were enjoying, simply through pure and unadulterated sleep.

Then something broke into the blank mind of Temperance, a vision very clear and yet not so. Rather it would be said that the vision was very vivid, transfixing itself in Temperance's mind. There was no doubt that it would happen, or had already happened – a real vision. However what he was seeing was fragmented. It did not present itself to Temperance in a chronological order, or even a connected order at all. It instead came in the form of many short flashes – each very real, but the job of piecing the vision together would have to be done.

And vision after vision flashed inside Temperance's mind, disturbing his calm sleep and making him toss and thrash around on its bed. The purity and innocence of downy sleep broken, all Temperance could see was the terrifying visions: Brock turning his back on the Gym Leaders and walking off into darkness; Zapdos, Moltres and Articuno unleashing a combined blast on Lance; huge lightning bolts striking the earth; and a mysterious net, seemingly made out of light. There were many more, but most flashed by too fast for Temperance to fix them in the inner recesses of his mind. Just as Temperance was getting dizzy from all the images, a final one entered his vision, and this one was the clearest of all – Lillette lying down in a pool of blood, with Temperance – himself – sobbing over her body.

Temperance woke with a start. He was shivering, and the cosy room he had used to remove his weariness now seemed oddly sinister. His face was covered in sweat, and Temperance knew they were mixed with tears. Opening the ward door, Temperance still heard the unmistakable sounds of a battle going on outside, but he closed the door again. What was going on outside was now the least of his worries. The scene – the final scene he had viewed – of Lillette's body lying spread-eagled on the ground. Was it a hallucination, just a product of his own innate fears? No. It had been far too real – all of the visions had been as if he had been part of the scene itself. And the last one had been exceptionally vivid – not just passing through his subconscious like some of the others had done.

Was their mission doomed to end in despair?

Naturally, Temperance's attention then fell on the girl still sleeping at the other end of the room. For the first time in a very long time, he had a chance to observe her without any more pressing or urgent things on his mind. As he gazed upon her sleeping form, memories that had been banished to the back of his mind, three days – was it only three days? - of memories already forgotten with everything that was happening, came back to him. All the scoldings she had given him, the emotions she had transferred, how their different backgrounds had combined wonderfully. It was very hard to think rationally, but a previously unused part of Temperance's brain was now kicking in, had been kicking in since the kiss at Seafoam. And in his mind, there was no doubt that he loved her.

Previously, he would have scoffed at the thought – one did not simply "feel" things without rationalisation and logic. But now, perhaps, he was starting to believe that unknown attraction and feeling could be far more powerful than the logical thinking he had always subscribed to. But was it all to end? Were his newfound emotions to be lost once more, locked in a hidden room, the key thrown away with Lillette's death? Would be become what he was before – powerful and great trainer, but lacking in every other department? Could he stand going back to that life?

And as Temperance pondered over these complex thoughts, as Metagross outside finally fell to Giovanni's Dugtrio's Earthquake attack, as Salamence, instrumental in the early success of the defenders, fell to two consecutive Ice Beam attacks, as Lillette opened her eyes to find Temperance bending over her, his eyes dry, but full of anguish, there was activity going on at the other end of Kanto as well.

_Fingers out, Lance randomly targeted an object on the horizon, thought of the attack he was going to perform, and concentrated. Lightning splayed from his fingers, setting fire to the tree he was aiming at. Satisfied, Lance turned to another tree, focused again, and this time it was water that poured from his hands, striking the tree with such force that it toppled over in a second. He smiled to himself. He was now the ultimate being ever to grace the earth. And what were the three birds now – even if they escaped his binding?_

"Temperance? Are you alright?"

The simple question caused all of Temperance's emotions to rush out, escaping the bonds that had kept them in check. The tears now started to flow, dripping onto Lillette's back as he embraced her tightly, the cold future he had seen partially displaced by the warmth of her body. Lillette had only the slightest of hesitations before returning the gesture, feeling his body shiver and shake with the anguish of his sobs. Temperance tried to speak, to tell her what he had seen, to tell her what had provoked this sudden change in behaviour, but he simply could not find the words. Every time he started to talk, the vision of him holding Lillette's body in his arms, shouting as if his words could bring her back to life, came back to him. And every time he saw the vision, his mind would go blank.

It took a long time for Temperance to calm down. Not that it mattered. For the two, there was only the present. Although the future was right behind, uncertain, fraught with danger and despair, Temperance allowed himself to simply forget, leaving himself in the arms of the person he loved. And with the forgetting of the visions, came the gradual loss of his fear.

The embrace was finally broken. With it came the stopping of the tears by Temperance. And conversation could finally begin.

"Temperance, your vision you saw, you are positive it is real? Does it really confirm my death? From what you have described, it just shows me severely injured…"

But Lillette herself knew that the imagery and description Temperance had shown erased any doubt that it was a vague hallucination. And surely her soldier's training had imparted the knowledge long before this – an injury of this magnitude could not be survived, unless medical attention was at hand. The vision Temperance had was far from any Pokemon Centre, and for all the Max Potions that Temperance carried, they would only prolong the agony before death.

The two fell back into silence. Seeing into the future was no doubt a burden, especially when it affected those closest to the heart. Lillette knew that as a soldier, when she applied to join the Kanto defence, she had to be prepared to die as part of her duty to the country. And in all her previous missions, she had taken the necessary risks needed to complete her tasks. Why then was she fumbling now? Was it because her death was now virtually a certainty? So, should she carry out the standard actions in the field, or simply rush headlong into the midst of battle, knowing that she would die even if she tried to avoid it? Finally, she came to a decision.

"Ignore it, Temperance."

Temperance still remained motionless, his head down facing the covers. If there was any reaction to her words, it was the subtle tightening of his fists. Before the words of protest and horror could manifest themselves in speech, Lillette went on again.

"I know I have represented your vital instrument in breaking free from the cold life you have led for all this while. And after leading you so close to accessing all of the emotions locked up in the ice of your heart, it is… selfish… for me to suddenly depart now. But, I believe I have done what I needed to do. The kiss at Seafoam – that did not only awaken you to the power of love, it also was one of the best moments in my entire imperfect life. If there are regrets over loss, I will join your club. And yet – no matter how many seconds I have left to live – no matter how few memories I have the time to permanently leave with you as a token – no matter how long I have to wait in the desolateness of the afterlife before you will join me – there is always my love. Remember that, Temperance. I love you, and I will always love you, whether I live or die. So live your life to the fullest! If you escape out of this ordeal, continue to release your emotions. I will be watching, and I will be proud."

Temperance looked into Lillette's deep brown eyes for a long time. Both sets of eyes were dry. The grief was now beyond tears. Finally, Temperance leaned forwards and kissed Lillette full on the lips. The passion of the searing kiss was beyond Temperance's wildest imaginations. In the kiss, Temperance conveyed all his feelings for her, but in a much lesser period of time – time that had been expected to be several decades long. Their lips continued to interlock, the war forgotten. Until the shaking of the Pokemon Centre snapped them back out of their trance.

"Back to the battle then, Temperance. Remember, no matter what happens, there is always my love."

Temperance nodded. Words again failed him – what words could describe the magnitude of his feelings? Linking hands again, Temperance and Lillette pushed the ward door back open and ran out of the Pokemon Centre, to see Tyranitar, enraged, alone, sweep three Rockets aside with a sweep of its great tail, and slash an attacking Fearow so it fell back to the ground, its wings flapping no more. Even without sight, the Dead captain was a formidable opponent. Then Giovanni ran up its back, raised a dagger, and plunged it into Tyranitar's head.

He was instantly slammed into the Pokemon Centre wall by the monstrous Tyranitar, the dagger still sticking out from its grisly head. Blood was leaking out, and Tyranitar was struggling to maintain its balance, but the time it had left would be more than sufficient to impale Giovanni upon his own city building and hold Kanto bereft of another Gym Leader.

Until two Drill Pecks cut off Tyranitar's hand holding Giovanni by the throat. Xatu and Dodrio sliced and diced the weakened Tyranitar, cutting off limb after limb. Finally, Flygon appeared and gave the Tyranitar a Hyper Beam in the torso. Tyranitar flew somewhere in the direction of Viridian Forest, defeated just in time by Temperance and Lillette. A quick survey by Lillette showed that Giovanni was virtually unhurt, save for some bruises and cuts that was to be expected when engaging in battle. The nurse hastened to bind his wounds, much like she had done earlier for Temperance and Lillette.

Temperance, however, was not really interested in the aftermath of the battle. He vaguely saw bodies of the Rockets – previously committing petty crime for riches and power, getting foiled time and again – now making the ultimate sacrifice to save Kanto from Lance and his army of Dead. Bonded by trauma? An alliance of humans and Pokemon alike, against a common enemy?

Then the scene he had been waiting for presented itself. The cries of the birds were audible from even a great distance, and as ever, the very sound of Zapdos, Moltres and Articuno appearing to fight on their side was a huge morale booster. Temperance looked up, and for the first time in a day, smiled. Zapdos, entire body crackling with electricity, landed on the ground, along with the flaming Moltres and icy Articuno. They had succeeded in freeing the three legendary birds from Lance's grasp. Now, according to legend, Lance could be bound anew, freed from the possession of the evil that was exacting its revenge on the country that had bound it thousands of years ago.

If it worked. And if Temperance could keep enough cool – something that would be taken for granted a few weeks ago – to prevent himself from throwing his life away to follow Lillette, doomed for an early death, death that would arise when fighting Lance. But he knew what he had to do, knew his duty that he had to perform in order to restore peace – and a new system of government – to Kanto. He would not be afraid. Lillette's spirit would be with him when he walked down the road for the final battle – a single combat with Lance himself.

For that was his destiny. When the three birds were free, and the Gym Leaders combined their powers to bind Lance temporarily, Temperance could absorb some of the power Lance had taken for himself. Turning himself into a virtual Pokemon – albeit one that was not limited by the form his attacks could take. It had been used for evil by Lance. He had to use some of the same power to combat the evil.

_There is always my love._


	19. Betrayal

PokeStones of the Dead – Chapter Eighteen

Brock had received the message from Dragonair, asking him to hasten his attempt to draw out the sacred powers from his Pewter PokeStone – a massive Golem – in order to combine that power with the remaining Gym Leaders to bind Lance enough for his power to be partially transferred. He of course, verbally agreed, although he had not really paid attention to the message, or even the situation. All the news he had gotten was from the two youths running through his city a day ago – _what were their names again? _And even then all he had been asked was whether his Pokemon had gone missing. _Honestly, what did they think – that I was giving out free Pokemon?_

Settling into his comfortable chair in his office, Brock drew up his computer screen of the taxes he had collected this month. Surprisingly, the number was less than last month – and that was including the 2 increase in taxes he had imposed due to… the rising costs of Pokemon breeding, yes. Checking the table more carefully, he found that the decrease was due to the number of tax defaulters skyrocketing due to extreme poverty. _Great. I was looking forward to grabbing 10 more Carbos for all my Pokemon. Never mind, the usual method of punishment applies – their right to own Pokemon will be default until they can scrounge up the cash._

Then, Brock finally turned his attention to the task he had been charged with. Actually, the PokeStones that he had agreed to build in conjunction with the other Gym Leaders were simply there to fuel his city with the electricity that was eating into his sinker fund for Pewter. And, well, it looked cool, what with the realism and all. _Now somehow, there is this supernatural force lying deep within them that I have to draw out and master, so I can bind this ridiculous necromancer that has somehow managed to absorb the powers of all Pokemon in existence. _Brock sighed, unaccustomed to a force that could usurp his virtual throne. In the past he had been a fair and powerful Gym Leader, but then he found that there were far too many trying to imitate documentaries on TV about Pokemon trainers who had managed to make it big, either in Kanto or in neighbouring regions.

So, what was he to do? Surely not allow them to simply leave the city in droves – didn't people ever be content with what he was giving them anymore? So he had just tightened Pokemon laws, so that only the most powerful could leave to further their skills. Then he realised that allowing the powerful to leave posed a threat to his rule over his city, so he prevented them from exercising their once-rights. It was a natural reaction, after all. Surely he could not allow them to prepare their rebellion in some far-off place until they actually COULD rebel.

Brock opened his internet browser and then logged onto his email account. It was time to bring this worrisome command to the attention of his allies in Kanto. There were some – the Cerulean and Celadon Gym Leaders, as well as the especially irritating Giovanni – that were constantly criticising his policies. _Well, one's dead, and we still hold a majority in Parliament. They can't do anything. _Brock sent his message to Sabrina and Blaine, before adding Janine to the list. _Her father's dead, but surely he would have imparted his values and ideals to his daughter._ Misty and Giovanni remained conspicuously absent from his list of recipients.

Clicking the "Send" button, Brock turned back to the window on taxes. They would meet up later and have a good chat on what they had to do in order to fend off the pesky kids who thought that they somehow had the power to command the Gym Leaders.

Lillette was strengthening the forces that she had to deploy in order to take down the swarm of Dead that would no doubt surround the sacred place that they had to penetrate in order to bind Lance to the remaining Gym Leaders' will. Her soldier mind automatically kicked in as she divided the forces she had into divisions, each with a captain. Lance's dragons had returned with the reinforcements they had been sent to get, including the Fighting Dojo Master, completely recovered after his leading role at Lavender, Bill, who was offering advice and information about new Pokemon strategies that would come in useful, and hundreds of wild Pokemon committed to defeating the new power that was upsetting the chain of being in Kanto. Temperance watched her from the Pokemon Centre, him being grossly out of his depth in such matters. Instead he made use of the free time he had to emotionally bond with his Pokemon. Their role in the upcoming fight would be large, but he was the one that would play the biggest role of all.

They had a good chance, really. No matter how many Dead Lance could dig up from the timeline of deaths, they were still no match for an organised force of living Pokemon. And Lillette was possibly the best military commander Kanto had ever seen. Not to mention that their forces had been largely bolstered by the addition of wild Pokemon to their ranks. Even the Pokemon once loyal to Lance, the Pokemon that had listened to his orders as he commanded the defeat of Temperance and Lillette in fair battle, had switched sides. Surely the very repulsive nature of his actions would turn all his allies away, except for the emotionless Dead. And of course, they now had the three legendary birds on their side.

Janine's computer beeped as she received incoming mail. She stopped what she was doing – researching her father's notes on the Venomoth PokeStone that had been built. Funnily enough, all she could find were notes and receipts of the monetary transactions Koga had taken part in. She had always disapproved of the high taxes and policies in Fuchsia, but she hadn't expected the scale of them to be so large. Opening up the new message, she was startled to see a proposal of a meeting to – work against the boy and girl who had saved Lavender? When Brock himself had done, well, nothing?

In an instant, Janine realised the deep-seated problem that was plaguing Kanto, and how most of the Gym Leaders – including her late father that she respected – used to respect – were causing the problem. She was now Gym Leader of Fuchsia, wasn't she? In charge, able to make decisions? She quickly forwarded the message to Misty and Giovanni, adding on a message of her own. _They're meeting in a bid to boycott the plan set to bind Lance! They're trying to hinder Temperance and Lillette! We have to stop them! Go to Pewter City ASAP. We have three, they have three, and it's finally going to be even. _

Sending her own message, Janine then went back to the original message, where she posted a very fake reply about how she was also worried that all her father had worked for all these years would be undone by the "two pesky kids". It looked fake even to her own eyes, but perhaps Brock and the rest could not determine her character. Everything depended on this meeting, whether they could persuade the other three to join in. Cursing the lack of Poison Pokemon capable of supporting human weight, Janine ran towards the Pokemon Centre in Lavender, where she was currently residing, to withdraw her Fearow from the PC. She had to get there, and fast.

Every remaining Gym Leader was now checking their mail – some with two new messages, some with only one. Even Giovanni, newly selected as the captain of the main force that was to spearhead the assault, could not have missed the beeping of his PDA located in his pocket. Janine's message was obviously composed in a great hurry, and showed that they had precious little time remaining if they were to intercept the secret meeting. Giovanni quickly informed Temperance and Lillette of an "urgent and impromptu meeting", then got on Rhydon, which thundered its way towards Viridian Forest and Pewter beyond. At Cerulean, Misty was already on Mantine, preparing to fly right over Mt.Moon – it was after all not in safe condition after the battle – and all of Lance's Dead were not patrolling the skies anymore, they had all been called to the sacred location that had to be protected at all costs.

Brock walked to the Museum, the rendezvous point that he had stated in his email. _Janine cannot make it, but she will agree with whatever decision we make._ _Sabrina would no doubt take mere seconds to arrive – she could always teleport here while holding on Alakazam or one of her other Psychic Pokemon. As for Blaine… probably he would arrive on his Charizard. _And sure enough, Sabrina was now walking right ahead of him, her waist-length black hair as attractive as ever. A red light signified the returning of her Alakazam into her Poke Ball. Looking up, Brock also saw Charizard speeding above. It quickly descended, the steep dive hardly fazing its rider. Blaine was by far the oldest of the Gym Leaders, but his ambition and energy had not dissipated. In fact he was probably the one who had pushed for the harsher laws that were now characteristic of Cinnibar and Pewter, even though his city itself was the least populated out of the cities with a Gym Leader.

"So. I trust you are aware of the situation at hand."

Brock had already posed the question before Blaine recalled Charizard, knowing the enormity and urgency of the situation. Before Sabrina and Blaine could show their assent, Brock was continuing his statement.

"We now have a choice between two evils here. Lance has now gotten the power to choose his form of punishment against us. As you know, Lance was a leading dissenter of our value system, and frequently made tirades against us in Parliament sessions. Well, he has decided to take matters into his own hands, and can now command the powers of Pokemon. His first targets will be us. Whether we will be incinerated, electrocuted, or simply torn apart with the force of the mind, is all up to him."

Brock allowed the words to sink in, then continued, speaking more urgently now and to the point. "Well, the only way we have to stop him is through the combination of our powers with the other Gym Leaders. That will apparently allow Lance's power to be partially diverted into the body of another human. And somehow, that human has been chosen to be a sixteen-year-old boy! Not one of us, second in battle to the now-defunct Elite Four, but a mere youth that had been training in Hoenn!"

Brock again checked himself, pushing the anger back inside him, before speaking again, "We must either allow Lance to rule Kanto, or allow that boy to take Lance on in a final battle. And if the boy triumphs, what then? Will he still retain the power he had taken from Lance? Would he be no better than what is threatening us now? I am sure, spending time in Viridian, they would have known about what we are doing from Giovanni. He may or may not set up a new scheme of government, one that would totally destroy the power we had been building up all this while. Hell, his newfound power would even give him the liberty to declare himself dictator for life. So, what is your take on the matter?"

Blaine was the first to reply. Obviously he had anticipated the topic of the meeting and had come to his own conclusion. "Certainly, we are in a position of great danger. The boy, fresh from Hoenn, knows nothing of the complexities of the Kanto politics. Blinded by the moral high ground, he might even decide to abolish the entire Constitution altogether. Can we allow that? I think not. However the alternative lies with Lance and the total destruction of our cities anyway. I think the more prudent course is to take alliance with this boy for a while, and wait for an opportunity later. Maybe they'll finish each other off in their battle, and that would be all the better for us."

Sabrina simply nodded, but for the first time, Brock noticed that she looked unsure of herself. Usually, she was as cool as ice, making decisions based on logical thinking. Also, she showed no compassion for the subjects she was ruling – Saffron, while the most prosperous city in Kanto, had only wealth for the top echelon like the management of Silph Co. The simple citizens had as much money to spare as all the citizens in Cinnibar – not very much. Yet now her simple gesture of nodding seemed forced, as if she was struggling within herself. Brock cast the thought aside. They had no time to worry about that now.

"So, we will agree verbally. Go and retrieve whatever power from the PokeStones that they want us to retrieve, and meet at the rendezvous point stated by them. After Lance is defeated, we will surely be able to overthrow that boy."

Just as Brock turned to leave, an angry voice – voices – sounded from around him. Spinning around, Brock saw three figures step outside from the trees. _Misty, Giovanni, and… Janine?_ _That bitch must have tipped them off… I made a mistake including her in the email. But Sabrina surely must have sensed them hiding in the forest… she IS a psychic, after all – or has she had second thoughts about the entire scheme?_

Blaine looked as surprised as him. Both their eyes turned to Sabrina, who was determinedly staring at the ground, avoiding their gaze. Before he could speak, Giovanni had already started his speech.

"So! You have decided to take matters into your own hands, and act independently of the entire body of Gym Leaders, right? Has your avarice and lust for power really blinded you to the situation at hand? You want to screw up your own city, fine, I can't stop you. But if you want to destroy Kanto because of your stupid character flaws, you really need to think hard about it!"

Brock decided that he had no time for confrontation now. He had heard the same words a thousand times before, and was already numb to it. He turned to leave, ignoring the angry conversation behind him. Until Alakazam materialised right in front of him, blocking the way back to the Pewter Gym. Brock wheeled around again, only to see Sabrina finally meeting his gaze, the cool blue eyes shining with something resembling… anger?

"Stop right there, Brock. If you persist in continuing this nonsense, even I will not help you. I have met the boy in question that you were lambasting just now, after the Battle of Lavender. I really do not foresee him being the dictator and tyrant that you make him out to be. A new system of government – maybe. But I will take that risk, over simply letting him go and fight Lance without our proper support, like a pig to slaughter! You suggest ridiculous things. Pretending to help them, and then stabbing him in the back? What has the money done to you? Besides totally warping your mind into something resembling Lance itself? I can now understand why Lance is doing this. Because of people like you!"

Brock was stunned. There was no possibility that Sabrina had joined the other side… He looked to Blaine for support, before noticing that Blaine, having talked to the other two Gym Leaders all this while, had moved over to their side. _Even Blaine's been converted as well?_

Giovanni said, "Checkmate, Brock. You're alone now. Will you change your stand, or will you come over and save Kanto?"

Brock's answer was silent. In a flash Onix was out – along with a Sandstorm attack. While the other Gym Leaders covered their eyes, Brock was already turning back towards Pewter. They had only five Gym Leaders, not the six required to cast the binding spell.


	20. Betrayal II

PokeStones of the Dead - Chapter Nineteen

The sand seemed to take forever to dissipate. Whether Brock had left his Onix there to cast Sandstorm for a longer time, or that the move's power had been enhanced through training, no one knew. Finally, Janine solved the problem by asking her Fearow to Whirlwind the Sandstorm away. Careful to point the attack away from the other Gym Leaders, Fearow drew up a very strong gust of wind that blew the sand away into the distance, creating a safe area for the Gym Leaders to take refuge. Once the sand had been blown away, Misty cleared her eyes with one of her water Pokemon, and soon the Gym Leaders were all lining up at Politoed in order to ease the pain in their eyes. Once everyone had recovered from the sand, it was Giovanni that started talking. However, he did not address his words to the entire company but to two specific members.

"Sabrina, Blaine. Are we to take it that your actions prior to this mean that you have decided on your course? And you will not turn back to the other path that you have just left? We cannot afford, as dangerous the current situation is, to allow the defeat of Lance if it means the subsequent betrayal of Temperance and the restoration of the old system. That would just lead to fanatics like Lance to find out things they should have never have known. In fact, I sometimes sympathise with what he has done, considering the state of Kanto at present. So, declare your intentions."

Sabrina took the lead in replying. "I swear on my blood, that I am committed to the defeat of Lance via the alliance with Temperance, or any loyal to him. I will assist him in any way necessary. I will follow his orders and abide by his judgement after the defeat of Lance." As she spoke, she drew a dagger from her waistband – the dagger was standard protection for all Gym Leaders in a total emergency – and drew some blood from her palm. The blood then magically flew up into the air, forming two circles – one inside the other. The bloody symbol of the Marsh Badge hung in the air, and then grew bright and faded away – signifying the acceptance of the oath.

Blaine did the same. After the Volcano Badge had faded away just like Sabrina's had done, Sabrina took out several documents from her backpack, and handed them to Giovanni. Stopping what he was about to say, Giovanni inspected the documents and found that Sabrina had actually reduced the taxations on Saffron for the past few months, accepted Gym Battles again on all dates without appointments and redistributed the wealth among her citizens by giving away Pokemon vitamins and other objects that she had had in her possession – most of them bought with the money she had collected from her citizens before.

"Guilt – but too little of it. Too little to sever my alliance with Brock and Blaine, at any rate. Too little to allow my citizens to tell others of their improved life – the two still had to think I was loyal to their cause. Enough guilt to take the actions that you now see, however. Was it because I had a vision of what was to come?"

Sabrina fell quiet, and Giovanni handed the documents back to her without a word. However, as he turned back to the company of Gym Leaders, everyone saw the small smile he gave to Sabrina. Then it was gone, and he asked the direct question that had been on his mind since Brock's refusal to cooperate.

"Can we bind Lance with only five Gym Leaders? Lillette – Temperance's um, companion – has told me that six Gym Leaders – or City Elders, as they were once known - were used to bind the evil long ago. There were only seven Gym Leaders then – Cinnibar had not been discovered – and the seventh Gym Leader was the receiver of the power. It has been concluded that Temperance will take the place of the seventh Gym Leader to receive the power that will be transferred with the help of the three legendary birds. This is because the person receiving the power does not need to have the bloodline, but those binding Lance do. As Koga's daughter, Janine, his blood status automatically passes to you with his death, thus theoretically we have six Gym Leaders – enough to cast the binding spell. But…"

"I think we need to go back and ask Lillette about this. She's the one that has done all the research, right? Perhaps we need to ask her each Gym Leader's role in all this – it would help generally in the upcoming battle, after all. And we have no information at present. How will we devise a plan like this?" This came from Misty, who ascertained that their discussion like this had as much use as going up to Lance and attempting to punch him. And hence it was agreed that they would go back to Viridian, where Temperance and Lillette stayed, enjoying their last moments of peace before the final battle began.

Lillette had concluded her strategy. However, she knew that her battle was merely a sideshow when compared to the epic battle that would take place between Temperance and Lance. Both players would be able to brush off any Pokemon or Dead attack with ease. However, her forces still needed to break through the enemy defence satisfactorily for the Gym Leaders to cast their binding spell on Lance. Thus she was pulling out all the stops, leaving none behind in her bid to break through the army of Dead that no doubt awaited them at the sacred location. Turning to Temperance, she noticed that he had vacated his usual spot with the troops, and was walking into the Pokemon Centre. Deciding to follow him, Lillette commanded the troops at ease and entered the Viridian Pokemon Centre.

In the room that they had rested earlier on, Lillette found Temperance lying on the bed, but his eyes were wide open. Seeing the door open, his eyes turned to her for an instant, then returned to the ceiling. "I thought you would come. I'm just so tired – and well, nervous. I mean, I have to take on Lance in solo combat, when he has several advantages over me. He's had time to practice his newfound abilities, for example. Also I will only get the powers of Fire, Ice, and Lightning – as well as the ability to fly. He'll lose those three elements, but he still has plenty more that I don't…"

"Remember what I told you, Temperance. There is no use fretting over what you need to do or what your victory will represent for the various parties involved in this war. You don't see me slitting my wrists over my upcoming death, do you? I have total confidence in you, and my heart tells me that you will triumph over Lance. Whether I will be there to relive the victory with you, I do not know, but no matter what – taking the risk of sounding like a broken record – there is always my love."

"Now, sleep. Use the time you have remaining to recover your energy for the battle later. I saw the Gym Leaders returning from Pewter – five of them. I do not know what this means, but I have to go meet them, and it would be best if you stayed here. I will come back after I see them." So saying, Lillette gave Temperance a light kiss, and exited the room, leaving Temperance on the bed. His worry and nerves had somewhat gone, and his eyes closed, his face peaceful as he went back to sleep.

Lillette went back out to see the five Gym Leaders. All of them, on their various Pokemon, had entered the city boundaries by now. Jumping off their Pokemon, the Gym Leaders collectively recalled their transport and went straight to the point, asking the same question that had been the stumbling block earlier in their discussion. Could the binding spell be cast with only five out of the six members present? On receiving the question, Lillette tried to recall the many lines of text that the book had held, trying to access the memory that would give her the answer.

"Yes, but it will not be easy. The final member of the Gym Leaders would have been required to ensure that the spell took hold, regardless of Lance's status at the time of the binding. With only five Gym Leaders, the basic formation of the spell will form, but Lance can break free from it if he is at his full condition, and is alert. To let the binding spell allow the three legendary birds to siphon Lance's powers away, he needs to be distracted while the spell is cast. Since we have no other way to defeat Lance, there needs to be a distraction of some sort while you five prepare the binding spell. Any negotiation or tricks will simply not work – Lance has gotten access to Psychic powers. The distraction must come from another source."

"So, you're saying… bangs and smoke?"

"No. Lance has no more reason to care about random explosions and whatnot – his Dead are after all just minions under his control, to prevent us from getting the Gym Leaders close enough to cast the binding spell while he focuses on other matters. What we need is someone to draw his attention, someone he has reason to notice, yet he must not suspect a trick if he decides to read the mind of the person we send. That means that this person in question must be on our side, yet must not know he is on our side. It sounds ridiculous, yes, but it is the only way to distract Lance at this stage."

Silence followed these words, as the Gym Leaders pondered on how to distract Lance, when normal events were now beneath his notice. Only someone who he would consider a threat – a tall order – or someone he had reason to hate would fit the bill. Yet neither scenario would allow a person to walk in and distract Lance for long enough, yet not arouse the suspicion of Lance's Psychic powers. Then, Sabrina spoke.

"I think I will be able to manage this through hypnotism. Technically, if the person we are sending is hypnotised, his mind will not be able to give out the needed information for Lance to determine his true intention. I have no doubt that I will be able to implant a false memory in that person's brain with assistance from my Pokemon. So, that only leaves the person that we need to send. Preferably expendable, for there is a high chance that Lance would kill him or her after he finds out of the trap."

More silence. Apparently, the thought of sending someone to his or her death was not appealing to the Gym Leaders. Moreover, it was not a question of randomly picking a civilian to go and sacrifice himself – Lance would simply ignore him, or squash him like a bug. The person had to be reasonably important, which made the decision all the harder. Finally, it was Lillette that spoke, after deliberating whether to raise what she had been thinking for a long time. It would no doubt be controversial, but desperate times did call for desperate measures.

"You could send Brock, you know."

As predicted, expressions ranged from the horrified to the contemplative, with Sabrina not showing any emotion at all. Could she possibly have predicted this…? Of course, she was a psychic. It was perhaps expected. _So, is this what we've come to? Sacrificing Gym Leaders like this, all so we can end this war? Well, we COULD have another attempt at persuading him to simply cast the binding spell without all this nonsense, but somehow I don't think that would work. _

"Sabrina, go withdraw your Hypno from the Mac at the Pokemon Centre and we shall make for Pewter immediately. We will go directly with the hypnosis. We have to do this quickly!" This was Giovanni, who had obviously analysed the situation and found no other way. As a Gym Leader – one of the Gym Leaders Lance was so against – he would surely plan more to Brock than the straight killing. Everyone else was either indispensable, or not important enough. Brock was the perfect choice, even if it went against all the morals that were held dear by Gym Leaders.

Sabrina walked towards the Pokemon Centre without a word. She was back out again in seconds, Hypno by her side. This was a journey for her alone. It was imperative that Brock not notice an invasion of his city, as Lance would again be able to extract that information from his mind. It had to be done by stealth, and Sabrina was the only one who could carry out the hypnosis needed, so she would undertake the task alone. The other Gym Leaders, decision made, disbanded and walked around Viridian. Sabrina, cutting a lone but distinct figure in the distance, walked slowly towards Pewter, her job to betray the person she had once regarded as what she wanted to be.

Meanwhile, Temperance lay on his bed, as his energy level gradually increased until he could be considered refreshed, the fatigue of all those battles finally removed. Once he woke up, there would be only a short time for him to get ready for the final battle south of Viridian, and his ultimate clash with Lance. Only one could survive that battle, and the result of it would have far-reaching consequences. Would it be him? And even if he won, what would be the price of victory? Lillette? Who else? Maybe even himself?


	21. The Last March of Kanto

PokeStones of the Dead - Chapter Twenty

"Prepare for battle!"

Lillette's words drew the relaxing soldiers – human and Pokemon alike – back to a state of alertness. Sabrina had returned a few minutes before, proclaiming that Brock had been successfully brainwashed – he would suddenly feel an overwhelming sense of hatred towards Lance, and would approach the venue of the final battle. He would then confront Lance, and if all went well, enraged or distracted Lance long enough for the binding spell to be cast. Sabrina had set Brock's departure time to two hours from now, meaning that the final battle preparations and tactics needed to be finalised immediately.

Lillette had already a battle plan, formulated not to eliminate as much of the Dead as possible, but rather to clear a path through them for the Gym Leaders to get in range. Unlike the battle at the tunnels, flying Pokemon would be a main part of Lance's arsenal. There would be no simple flight above the battle, not even on the mighty legendary birds. Lillette quickly divided her troops into the three divisions agreed on earlier, and reiterated the battle plan once again. The Gym Leaders had to be withdrawn from their captain positions, as they were needed to take cover until the Dead were split apart. Thus Lillette decided to take on sole command of the entire army, accompanied by some Kanto trainers who had turned up. The number of trainers in Kanto was so few that it had been a tough job finding any competent or experienced ones.

Lillette called a fifteen-minute recess, and then went to the Pokemon Centre to wake Temperance up. He had to make his own preparations as well. After all, it made no difference whether the battle plan was brilliant or a total failure if Temperance could not defeat Lance in battle. Temperance had no doubt refreshed his body and mind enough. He had apparently gotten over those horrifying visions, at any rate. So it was with optimism that Lillette shook Temperance lightly, getting him to wake up. He had to be seen outside – it was also a morale boost for the troops, who were laying their lives on the line for him.

Temperance washed his face before leaving the comfortable Pokemon Centre – would it be his last vision of peace? Temperance and Lillette then went outside, where the Gym Leaders were examining the three legendary birds. Lillette once again called the troops to attention, announced the arrival of Temperance, gave another overview of his duties and importance, finally addressing the entire crowd with the tone of finality. "Now, make haste to Death Peak!"

Death Peak was a mountain south of Cinnibar. If one were to venture beyond the islands of Seafoam, he would be entering the open ocean, where new islands were still being discovered. Signs of life had already been found, but the area was still relatively unexplored. Yet the discovery of ruins and other strange artefacts had confirmed that the desolate area south of Kanto was once bustling with life. Actually, the phrase was a bit of a misnomer. That area had been inhabited for all of twelve hours, before it collapsed to bits. The explanation for such an occurrence had been long thought to be lost, but Lance must have obviously found out the secret. And now Lillette knew, of course, having read Lance's notes on his computer. She had avoided revealing the full secret to anyone except Temperance – it was not needed, and some might be shocked regarding the scale of the entire project.

Death Peak was the area where the creator of Kanto originally wanted to place the new country. Yet a terrible miscalcuation of the spell at the last minute had horribly corrupted the spell and turned all life on the new country into horrifying zombies – the Dead which now stood at the exact same location. Not to mention an evil spirit, one so horrifyingly strong that the massive battle that followed blew the entire foundation of Kanto was to bits. The evil attacking Kanto's creator was defeated, but not before spreading its nature to the one that vanquished it. The creator of Kanto was none other than the very first Pokemon that was created – Mew, the mysterious Pokemon that none had ever seen save in legend.

Mew had won the titanic battle, and created Kanto to the north instead. However, it had failed to totally purge the land of the evil created from its attacker, and thus paid the price when it was corrupted by the remnants of its evil opposite. Thus Mew, creator of Kanto, rose three years later – after its soul had been finally taken by its inner enemy – to destroy what it had created. The Gym Leaders rose to the challenge, and Mew – or Dark Mew – lay buried deep under Death Peak, the site of the original battle, the site where the evil inhabiting its body was created as well.

But the Gym Leaders of the past had done their job. Even now, Dark Mew could not rise up of the ground either as in its original form – the dark spirit representing all evil in the world – or as the Mew form that it has corrupted. It could only transfer its power to another being. Obviously, Lance was this puppet that had unlocked the hidden power. And now he wielded some of the power of Mew. Even though the transfer was incomplete, Lance would still hold enough power to totally blow any other opposition to bits. Yet things like mass creation or destruction would be beyond his power.

However, he would now strive to go to Death Peak and unlock the full potential of Dark Mew – in other words, infinite power. Thus, he would even have the ability now to create a new world, or destroy one. It was imperative that they divert some of his power into another source, so that he would have an equal, and let the two slug it out – a lesser replica of the battle that had happened so many years ago. It would not be as titanic, but the result would have as much consequence as the previous one.

The troops were moving out now. The two hours had passed, and Brock was by now finding his own means of transport to Cinnibar and beyond. Entire flocks of wild Pokemon marched orderly out of Vermillion, united to destroy the Dead protecting Lance. Temperance was in the middle of the troops, similarly protected from any surprise attack that Lance might spring on them. After all, he was indispensable, and they could not afford to have him picked off from afar, either by a projectile or from Lance himself.

Viridian was slowly emptied, with only the necessary units left behind. All forces available for battle had been sent to the battle. Lillette briefed the units as the left Viridian. "March to Cinnibar, where you will stand and await further orders. You know how to cross the sea. And prepare yourself for the battle ahead."

The troops walked in formation – a strange but majestic sight. Obviously, the sheer variety of the Pokemon that formed Lillette's army did not create any symmetry or coordination in the moving of hands, paws, claws, and other body appendages. Yet anyone seeing the sight would no doubt be touched beyond words – all the free Pokemon of Kanto fighting as one unit, disagreements forgotten, against the greatest evil and threat since Dark Mew itself. It was lucky that Lance had left detailed notes of the entire history of Kanto on his computer – otherwise they would have no clue of the venue's whereabouts, paving the way for Lance to tap on the full power of Dark Mew and become as powerful as the Creator itself.

Two divisions slowly marched past Temperance, still transfixed on the various Pokemon that were flying and walking in formation. Then Lillette poked him in the back. "You should be walking behind that division with me. Go."

Temperance recalled Lillette's words to him earlier, cross-referencing them against the sight before him, and now saw that the important people – him, Lillette, the Gym Leaders – were all positioned between the second and third divisions. The two side divisions were about one-third the strength of the main contingent. As for Zapdos, Moltres and Articuno, they would be flying side by side – below the normal flying Pokemon, and above the rest of the troops. The mere sight of them would be enough to cheer up a despairing heart, and it was imperative that they offered this moral support as well as wreak havoc on the Dead.

After twenty minutes, the division ahead of Temperance was about to exit Pallet Town and into the sea separating Pallet and Cinnibar. It was not yet open ocean yet, and the waves here would be small compared to those that would be present on the second sea journey between Cinnibar and Death Peak. All the water Pokemon ahead of him picked up as many land-based Pokemon as they could, and then entered the water. Of course, Pokemon like Gyarados and Tentacruel would be able to carry many. Still, there remained the problem of how to transport humongous Ground- and Rock- typed Pokemon, both of which unable to even approach water.

Then Temperance saw Misty casting a spell again, not unlike the one she had cast on Lapras to allow her to fight on land. This one would allow Pokemon to withstand water, albeit not total submersion. All of the remaining Pokemon tentatively entered the water, and pushed forward slowly but surely. Temperance once again wondered at the extent of the Gym Leaders' powers – he had seen Misty and Sabrina exhibit them already. It was their turn to enter the sea, and Lillette released her Lapras for water transport. Temperance was about to release his own Gyarados, then decided against it and got on Lapras as well.

Lillette was surprised for only an instant, then accepted it as the water behemoth carved a swift path through the water, much faster than the Pokemon that were only enduring the sea because of Misty's spell. Lapras could have overtaken them easily, but Lillette checked her pace. There was an army to look after, and breaking formation would be an unforgivable break of protocol for a military commander. Instead she allowed herself to enjoy the feel of Temperance's hands around her waist – a rare tender moment in the haste of the situation.

And so the two thousand-strong army moved relentlessly toward Death Peak, where at least twice that number of Dead awaited. However, the living force now had, for the first time, an organised army, the power of the Gym Leaders behind them, as well as the mighty legendary birds. It would be a tough fight, no doubt. And all relied on Lillette's battle plan to carve a path through the Dead – for Brock to find Lance, get caught, and provide the necessary distraction for the remaining Gym Leaders to cast the binding spell.

"Lillette, you said that Lance would be waiting for us to go to Death Peak and challenge him. But if he needs to carry out some ritual or rite in order to harness the remaining power of Mew, couldn't he be doing it now? Why does he need to wait for us to try and prevent that from happening?"

Lillette was surprised at Temperance's astute observation. This was the only detail that she had avoided revealing to the troops and Gym Leaders. It put the entire force in a dilemma. If they avoided finding Lance at Death Peak, he would be unable to get the ultimate power he craved, but he would be strong enough to wipe out most of the resistance. Thus she had made a decision to challenge Lance on his home turf. While there was the obvious risk of walking into a trap, taking proactive action allowed for a more combined effort than simply waiting for individual assaults on undefended cities. After all, it made little difference whether they restricted Lance to this lesser power or not – it was still far beyond anything they had faced before.

"You see, Dark Mew does not simply hand over the power to destroy the entire country with minimal effort to anyone. It needs to be satisfied that this person is worthy to wield the power. Thus, what it has stipulated for the transfer of all its power is a single demand – a test if you will. Basically, Lance must defeat all the Gym Leaders in battle – the hated Gym Leaders that banished Dark Mew all those years ago. Only with the total defeat of those that once vanquished Dark Mew would cause a sufficient impression for the transfer of Dark Mew's full power."

Temperance understood. The upcoming battle was not a simple attack and defence of Death Peak. Both sides were fighting for something – Lance to gain the true power of the Creator, the power he had been seeking all this while. The other side was fighting for Kanto. Lillette pondered on Lance's true intentions – surely, he did not mean to destroy the world. Definitely not – dictators were nothing without something to dictate, after all. The journal entries on Lance's computer seemed to hint that he would set up a new system of government, one without the hated Gym Leaders that had abused their power – with him as the head. Probably, Lance did not think that what he was doing now was true evil – merely a last-ditch attempt to wrest power away from the corrupted Gym Leaders. Could they make him see sense? But Lance's actions now seemed to hint that his noble intentions had been corrupted by the evil spirit of Dark Mew. If all he wanted was to transform Kanto into a better place, he would not now wait at Death Peak to obtain the full extent of Dark Mew's evil abilities.

Lapras sailed on. The sun was now low in the sky – night was approaching. With the night came the habitat of the Dead. Cinnibar was in the distance, where the first division – measuring twelve hundreds – were waiting for the arrival of the remaining forces. Temperance looked around him. Gym Leaders were sailing or flying on their Pokemon in the immediate vicinity – with the exception of Sabrina, who was hovering above the water with the help of her Pokemon. Soon, Lance would face the combined powers of the Gym Leaders, the legendary birds, and every free Pokemon living in Kanto. The question was whether it would be enough.


	22. The Final Battle Begins

PokeStones of the Dead - Chapter Twenty-One

The final assembly of Lillette's forces were assembled on Cinnibar, where they made their final preparations for the battle ahead. Blaine had retreated back to his own Gym, where he now emerged carrying huge supplies of Pokemon items, whether to dispel poison or paralysis effects, or to simply heal a wearied Pokemon. The massive boost could be attributed to Blaine's prior hoarding of the items for himself, instead of supplying excesses to Pokemon Marts where it could be resold to the trainers at the town, whether residing there or paying a visit. Naturally, this was be a poor business move, as it prevented the Gym Leader in question from earning revenue from these items, but Blaine – as well as Brock and Sabrina – had made up for this loss with heavy taxes. Somewhat ironically, this tyrannical way of governance had actually come in handy for the crucial battle against Lance.

Lillette kept some of the Full Heals and Max Potions for herself, distributing the rest among the other captains of her army. Unfortunately, long-term boosting items like Calcium and Iron had all been used by Blaine on his Pokemon, but such small increases in strength would be negligible if they had been distributed evenly. Lillette supposed it was a good thing that they had been focused on the strongest Pokemon. At any rate, whatever Blaine's motives in keeping such amounts of items, it was a good sign for the attacking force, and there would always be time to ask questions and take action after the battle was won. If they won.

Amazingly, Blaine had more surprises in store for Lillette and Temperance, who was serenely overseeing the legions of Pokemon standing in neat rows. Tapping into the power of his Gym – and his PokeStone next to it – Blaine channelled a fan burst of red energy that was absorbed by every single Pokemon in the rank and file. On receiving this new power, the Pokemon seemed to have some hidden fire in their eyes, their spirits high, their self-belief bolstered. "Inner Fire," Blaine explained, after he was done. "Besides giving them increased stamina and confidence, the spell also allows Fire Pokemon to use their fire-based moves as many times as they want, without feeling tired."

It seemed like the power of the Gym Leaders had no end. Temperance was himself amazed by the skill, until he realised that such moves were mere toys compared with the power that Lance – and soon him – had. The magnitude of the situation hit Temperance again. It would always fade away for a short time, only to come back in fuller force when the opportunity presented itself. Still, what was there to be done? His road had been chosen. And so it was with a feeling of weary resignation – but accompanied with some quiet confidence – that Temperance took to the seas once again, barely thirty minutes after the arrival at Cinnibar, for the final battle at Death Peak.

All the information Lillette had on the number of the opposing force were estimates, based on Lance's semi-outdated notes on his computer. Sending scouts, again, would be more than useless – no matter how fast or now concealed they were, Lance could sense them from a mile away. This meant that the slow march towards Death Peak would be no doubt known about. It was a good thing that Lance's mind-reading skills could not be exercised at the same range as his enemy sensors. If not, their plot about Brock would be discovered by now, resulting in total failure. Soon, Death Peak would be in sight. The mountain, while the highest in the area, was frequently obscured by other lesser peaks and clouds. It would be visible soon, along with whatever horror awaited them.

And as the site of the battle slowly faded into view, a figure could be seen standing at the very top of Death Peak. Or not – on more careful examination, there was a good two to three metres of space between the figure and the ground. _Lance._ And any doubts to that figure's identity evaporated when a flash lit up the night sky, shooting up from Lance – and raining down as humongous lightning bolts onto the advancing army. The vision that Temperance had seen was once again true.

"Hold ranks! Increase speed forward!"

Lillette immediately gave the order, as some of the wild Pokemon were already breaking free in panic. Bolt after bolt struck down from the sky, randomly striking the advancing army. Lillette now saw the flaw in her plan – Lance did not even need to wait for them to approach. He could simply pick them off like flies from a distance. The ranks were still holding, but many had already fallen, and Lillette was only too aware that at this rate, the force would descend into total disarray. Then, all of a sudden, a brown ball appeared next to the group, anchored to the sea by some unknown force. All the bolts veered off course, hitting the brown ball and dissipating harmlessly. Giovanni this time was the architect of this fantastic lightning conductor that had prevented further casualties to the already disadvantaged group.

As the lightning faded away, repelled by the power of the Gym Leader, there were more surprises from the attacking troops. Zapdos absorbed the remaining bolts that were still in the air, and then combined all of their power in an earth-shattering blast that turned the fast darkening sky into daylight. Surely, that attack would give Lance something to think about – or not, as Lance dissolved into smoke for a second – ample time for the lightning bolt to speed past Death Peak harmlessly. Temperance recalled Lillette's words, _"Lance can utilise his Ghost power to fade into the shadows for a second, making himself totally invulnerable. This allows him to dodge projectiles – especially fast ones like lightning bolts."_

Then, rain started falling. And not just any rain – acid rain, mixing Lance's powers of Water and Poison. The water was very corrosive, and burned holes in Temperance's outer layer of protective clothing. It was simply another demonstration of Lance's powers – with the effect of lowering the entire army's morale. Janine absorbed the poison from the water, leaving behind only the water, but the Gym Leaders really needed to bind him as soon as possible in order to stop this relentless barrage of projectiles before they even reached Death Peak. And so Lillette ordered a full speed advance. After all, Brock had to be almost at Death Peak by now. Lance had not vaporised him from afar, which was a positive sign – at least Lance had some words to say to him. Their plan had not failed yet. Not by a long way. The foot of the mountain was now just five hundred metres away and drawing ever closer. Then the rain abruptly stopped.

Temperance and Lillette recognised the signs in an instant. Brock was now talking to Lance, preventing him from continuing to focus his destructive powers on the advancing army. It was time for drastic action. There might still be time to save the Gym Leader whom they had betrayed, if fast action was taken. Temperance, along with the five Gym Leaders, jumped onto the three legendary birds and broke off from the group, heading with full speed towards the peak. Sabrina cast some simple camouflage to conceal the birds' ascent, passing above thousands of Dead on the slopes of the mountain. Lance was still talking to Brock – and then they saw Lance's hands glow pink, levitating Brock away from solid ground and off the mountain, where he hung suspended hundreds of metres from the ground.

"And so you die! The one who caused Kanto to languish in such a state, foolishly coming to surrender to me? Do you think this appeases me? It is not enough. Not only you, but now, all of the Gym Leaders, the remnants of the hated former government, will soon be eradicated. And in its place will rise a new Kanto, with me as its head. I had allowed you to come up to the peak – false hope – for me to crush you once and for all. How many times did you promise to improve situations in Pewter? How many times were my hopes extinguished? And now, you know the feelings that I have been facing the day you came into power. Feel it! Allow the despair to sink in – before you fall to your death, a nice meal for my zombies."

Lance was speaking, his voice devoid of any mercy. Temperance now knew that his spirit – he had believed that what he had done was for a good cause – had been corrupted by Dark Mew. He was now simply an instrument of evil, and had to be stopped. He looked around, where the five Gym Leaders all drew a stroke in the air, the multiple colours coming together to form a net, where their colour changed to a pure, blinding white. Temperance raised three fingers, then dropped one and then one more. Finally, with a battle cry, the net of light was released, flung out with full force at the still-mocking Lance. Temperance knew that when the net hit, Lance's power would fail, causing Brock to fall to his certain death down the mountainside, but the situation was far beyond such cares.

All of a sudden, the maniacal rage on Lance's face turned into shock and horror, as the net of light – still too bright to look at directly – wrapped around his body. Without the time needed to set up a defence against the binding, all Lance could do was thrash around wildly in the net, but the bonds did not loosen. The colour of the net was now slowly darkening, fading into the dark sky, as the binding took hold. As the net turned dark grey, Temperance called upon Zapdos, Moltres and Articuno to finish the job. Lance's eyes were wide. He knew what was coming, and he could do nothing to prevent it.

Three relatively minor projectiles struck the helpless Lance – a lightning bolt, a jet of fire, and a shard of ice. But the attacks did not disappear upon contact like normal attacking projectiles. Rather, they remained connected to the three legendary birds, circling the bound Lance while Temperance and the Gym Leaders watched on. Just as how Dark Mew lost a portion of its power all those years ago, Lance's abilities of Lightning, Fire and Ice slowly rose up along the threads and into Zapdos, Moltres and Articuno. Temperance knew what was coming. He ran into the centre of the circling birds, bracing himself for impact.

Three beams blasted Temperance's body, his braced state slowly opening up to accommodate all the power that was entering his veins. It almost seemed as though he was glowing, glowing with the multi-coloured power that was now coursing through his blood. Eyes closed, Temperance absorbed all of Lance's former power, until the beams stopped. And when he opened them again, he was a different Temperance – one that was more powerful than any Pokemon alive at present. It felt good, it felt absolutely wonderful. He found that there was no need to learn how to use the newly-gained power, it was simply instinctive. As the net still binding Lance faded, causing him to fall from his previously hovering state, Temperance was there for him. Flying into the sky with a light touch on the ground, Temperance then tapped into his Ice power, forming an ice spear and burst towards Lance's falling body.

Only for Lance to turn around to face him, using his Dark power to compensate for his new lack of flying. Slowing his descent to the ground, Lance summoned up a steel sword – sharp to a point – and brought it down on Temperance's thrusting motion. Ice met steel, and the battle was on.

_Your power does not lie in simple lightning, fire, or ice attacks. If it was just that which was needed, the three legendary birds could just have defeated Lance for us. What your strength lies in is the power to utilise the pure core energy of the three elemental attacks. Your moves are not bound by skills, like Thunderbolt or Flamethrower. Rather, you can create things like fireballs, or perform spinning icy kicks that are not possible on Pokemon. Remember not to think only of moves available to Pokemon!_

Temperance noticed the Gym Leaders, along with the legendary birds, retreating back down the mountain for the lesser battle that was now taking place on its slopes. None of it mattered now. The victor here would be able to mop up any remaining opposing forces at his leisure after the other was vanquished. So Temperance faded out everything else from his mind – even Lillette's impending death – and put all his energy into defeating Lance. He knew that he would not get corrupted by Dark Mew's power, as the legendary birds had only drawn out the pure power source that had belonged to Mew – the Creator – before it had gotten corrupted. Of course, that amount of power, no matter how pure, would be tainted by strong fanatic emotion. It was how Lance had been corrupted through his hatred for Kanto's situation. However, Temperance, if anyone, was the prime candidate to be detached from emotion – so the danger of corruption was small. Basically, it was now the fundamental battle of good vs. evil, and Temperance had no intention of losing.

Temperance drew away from the clash of weapons, and rose higher into the sky, as Lance was forced to touch down on Death Peak again – his Dark power could not totally replace flying. With a battle cry, Temperance crumbled his ice spear into tiny icicle shards, and then ejected them at the peak below. Summoning a blizzard to follow the move up, Temperance made use of the time that Lance was on the ground to launch as many attacking moves as he could.

Lance touched off again, a shield of rock protecting him against the blizzard. Temperance was waiting for him to hover up to his level – where Lance would take a lightning bolt in the face. However, Lance did not even rise up to Temperance's height, but fired off a fan of water that arced around Temperance, before coiling itself into the shape of a dragon and striking at the surprised Temperance. Down Temperance fell, with the dragon pursuing him from above, while Lance sped below him, steel sword waiting. Upward was the ferocity of the dragon paired with the flexibility of water, while below was certain impalement. What could Temperance do against such a combination?


	23. Zapdos' Falling

PokeStones of the Dead - Chapter Twenty-Two

"Damn it!"

Temperance had time for only the single expletive to escape his mouth before the dragon would be upon him. Freezing the dragon would not do much good – it was too massive for the freezing spell to take effect too fast, anyway, and a massive chunk of ice falling onto his body would be no better than simply dropping down to receive the sword thrusting through his back. And so Temperance simply fell down, seemingly defenceless against the steel sword that Lance was holding up. Until his entire body became encapsulated in a fiery shield.

The fire barrier met the sword – and carved right through it, melting the metal in the process. So hot was the barrier that Lance was forced to drop the sword, and create a psychic barrier to protect him from the heat. Temperance decided that testing his fire against Lance's barrier would be too risky – with the dragon still overhead – and instead changed direction so that he avoided the dragon, then freezing it so that it was unable to control its movement, crashing down to the floor far below. The fire around Temperance's body dissipated – he did not have the energy – even if he had the power – to keep it around him permanently.

Lance's dark power ran out again, and he made a forced landing on the peak for a temporary recharge. Temperance was beginning to detect a pattern to this battle. Even though the raw strength of their power was even, Lance had a much greater number of powers to choose from. Taking the combination of the different types into account, Lance's variety of attacks and defensive spells put his own arsenal to shame. However, Lance's lack of the flying ability forced him to spend a moment after every assault descending to recharge his dark energy. This was when Temperance thought that he should make his move. Combining lightning and fire, he shot a combined projectile – primarily of fire, but lightning crackling around – at the grounded Lance. Then, he flew down at top speed, ice spear already in hand.

The same shield of rock was formed by Lance, holding it up to absorb the projectile. The fire could not melt the shield, while the lightning crackled harmlessly into the atmosphere on impact. Nevertheless, Temperance maintained the beam as long as he could – he had to keep Lance grounded for as long as possible. The impact on the shield increasing as he dropped to a lower level, Temperance suddenly stopped the beam and stabbed down on the shield with the ice spear. Ice and rock fragments where thrown into both combatant's faces as the titanic clash resulted in both objects exploding. Dust impairing his vision, but not his mind, Temperance quickly kicked out at the dark object visible in front of him, adding the power of lightning to the kick.

First blood.

Meanwhile, the lesser battles were raging all around the slopes of Death Peak. The fighters of freedom, directed by Lillette, were enjoying the upper hand against the largely uncoordinated undead Pokemon. Many of the Dead had been wiped out earlier through a pincer attack from the Kanto forces, with the three legendary birds raining destruction from the heavens. If the situation called for it, the three would assist Temperance in battle, but there appeared to be no real need for it at present. Therefore, their main duty was to now decimate the ranks of Dead – so that Temperance would have no unnecessary distractions from Lance's troops. Casualties were high, with many Pokemon and Dead alike killed from the massive battle on the peak of the mountain. When that dragon had fallen, at least thirty soldiers had been crushed, while the recent explosion had blown limbs straight off the weaker Dead. It was really chaotic.

"Moltres, Incinerate!"

Targeting an unfortunate Dead Lickitung nearby for death, Moltres ignited the core of the enemy. A red flame suddenly exploded from its chest, and soon the entire Pokemon was engulfed in flame. Moltres' ultimate attack, as Lillette knew from the research she had conducted.

"Explode it!"

Finally, Moltres put the poor Lickitung out of its mercy, adding more power into the internal burn – so that it exploded in a massive flame, the dark sky briefly illuminated in the brightness of the attack. The Pokemon chosen for death had been carefully chosen – it was at the centre of a massive bunch of Dead, meaning that no friendly forces would be hit by the blast. Instead, hordes of undead were sent flying in all directions, all on fire.

Lillette examined the battlefield, allowing a small sense of pride on marshalling the soldiers so well. Everywhere, the Dead were in retreat, going further up Death Peak. The high ground the enemy forces enjoyed would pose some problem, but the forces of Kanto had the far superior air presence. However, Lillette knew that no matter the victories they enjoyed here, it was nothing compared to the victory Temperance had to achieve.

Temperance was pressing against Lance's leg with his own foot, adding more and more lightning to the point of contact. His aim was to cause some temporary paralysis through the blow, but Lance seemed only mildly annoyed by the hit. He disengaged from Temperance, siphoning off the last of Temperance's lightning energy from his body through his ground powers. Then Moltres' explosion took place, halting the combat between the two. Temperance was the first to react. Using his fire powers, he diverted the power of the fire explosion, directing it all towards Lance. The fireball created from Moltres' Incinerate ability defied the laws of physics, changing direction in mid-air and hurtling with full force towards the surprised Lance.

Lance tried to block the attack again, but Temperance added his own fire around the fireball, so that even the powers of the Creator itself could not defend against such a fire attack. The ball was powered – with brute force – straight through the rock, and hitting Lance, burning away his upper clothing. The sense of victory flooded through Temperance – he had won, he just had to explode the massive fireball now, and Lance would be gone. No one could survive something like that. As another fire explosion once again turned night into day, all troops on the battlefield turned towards the source.

Only to see Lance still there, the explosion doing no visible damage to him. Temperance was momentarily perplexed – surely he could not have withstood such a blast? Then he saw the trails of translucent energy, and realised that Lance had again used his ghost powers to disappear into the nether plane for a few moments, avoiding the explosion entirely. The battle would obviously last much longer than he had anticipated – causing damage to him was proving to be a much harder task than he thought. The elements of fire and lightning were not defensive. Ice, on the other hand, was inferior to things like rock in terms of hardiness. Lance, apart from having the superior shield, had the ability to disappear and teleport around the battle arena. Temperance had to go on the offensive, but with Lance's superb defensive capabilities, finding a way through was going to be exceedingly difficult.

So Temperance went at Lance like a madman, using his supreme agility through flying and the lightning power to dodge Lance's rock and water projectiles. Firing off a fire blast here, then a lightning bolt there, Temperance was now directing the groove and rhythm of the battle. And he was making it as fast as possible. The sharp increase in speed surprised Lance, as Temperance sent a small lightning jolt through Lance's hand, flicking his steel sword out of his grasp. Catching it in mid-air, Temperance ignited the steel – with flames flickering on the blade – and then struck a full-power blow at the paralysed Lance.

The fire carved right through the flesh, burning it and igniting it from within, much like what Moltres had done earlier. Lance's hand was horribly maimed, even as he summoned another sword and doused Temperance's own with water, resuming combat. The two swords flashed against one another again and again, but Temperance was once again gaining the upper hand. Lance's left arm was hanging limply by his side, completely useless. Temperance, on the other hand, was unhurt. And the difference in condition was showing. Every time Lance's sword moved to block Temperance, he would noticeably give ground, as Temperance – now no longer taking to the air, using all his energy into defeating Lance – added the power of fire, ice or lightning to his sword, all the while trying to get through Lance's defence and strike the critical blow.

Lillette observed the battle from above, having rose up on Xatu to arrange and correct the battle formation. The clash of swords on the peak was so fast that Lillette had trouble following the action. Around her, the three legendary birds continued decimating the army of Dead, while the Gym Leaders organised and encouraged the Kanto forces. The battle had not been completely smooth – casualties were still high, and the Dead were not willing to simply roll over and die on seeing the three legendary birds. Blaine, rallying his troops in the face of several tough-hided Dead, had been knocked back by the tail of an Onix, while Lillette's own Scizor had been knocked out by stray fireballs caused by Moltres itself. However, the combat so far had been generally successful. She decided to risk pulling one of the birds out to assist Temperance – even though Temperance himself could use all their attacks and more, their power added to Temperance's moves could break through Lance's defences – as demonstrated by the fireball earlier.

So Zapdos flew to the peak, Thunderbolts directed at the already stretched Lance. Temperance's relentless barrage of blows had left Lance unable to counterattack, instead simply blocking Temperance's sword continuously. Zapdos' arrival was too much for Lance, as Temperance combined lightning with lightning, his sword gleaming with the static electricity. Lance disengaged, taking to the air once again. Temperance's heavy horizontal slash hit empty air, and the backswing of his own sword was too slow to prevent Lance from unleashing a hose-like jet of water that threw him off Death Peak, totally drenched. Temperance realised that Lance had now recovered from Temperance's fast attacks, and he was now controlling the pace of the battle. The sudden change of tack from melee combat to projectile attacks caught Temperance off guard. Recovering before his body hit the ground a thousand feet below, Temperance flew back up to assist Zapdos, who was twisting and turning in the air to avoid blasts of dark energy, huge rocks, water pulses, and poison barbs, among other projectiles. A fan of flame forced Lance to stop his attacks for the time being, as Zapdos took the chance to launch a massive Thunderbolt at Lance, who simply disappeared into the nether realm again, avoiding both attacks.

Lance reappeared with two dark dragons, sending one after Zapdos and other after Temperance. The snarling, enormous dragon was on Temperance in an instant. Temperance – with access to Ice attacks, one of the only effective elements against the mighty dragons – was not unduly worried at first, but when the dragon countered his ice beam with a dark blast of pure energy from its mouth, then resumed its charge, Temperance appreciated the mighty speed and power of the dragon type. He thought of Gyarados and Flygon – his two own dragons – and recalled himself giving his Pokemon to Lillette for use in the battle. And he remembered that Lance was also a dragon-type master. Changing direction to avoid the dragon's sharp horn, Temperance waited for the dragon to pass him by, then made use of the dragon's bulky body and subsequently low agility to slash at it with its sword, adding sharp ice crystals to the blade. The dragon fell, but not before unleashing a final blast of dark energy at Temperance, clipping his knees. Instantly, his entire leg below the knee felt numb, as if the dark power had removed all feeling from the afflicted area. Shrugging it off, he flew to Zapdos, who was having more trouble with the dragon.

Lightning attacks were poor against the dragon type, and Zapdos had already been hit once by the spiralling tail of the dragon as it passed by. Sending a surprise Ice Beam towards the attacking dragon, Temperance flew to the legendary bird's aid. Dodging Lance's projectiles as well as the dragon's own dark energy blasts, Temperance again did a precision slash at the dragon's wings, crippling it and causing it to fall down exactly like its counterpart had fallen a few minutes ago. The two dragons vanquished, Temperance triumphantly turned towards Lance, sword ready for his next assault.

And then Temperance made his mistake.

Lance, dark energy gone, once again fell towards the peak, but then he appeared to lose his balance, stumbling and falling close to a forest a few feet below the peak. Temperance thought that Lance must have been weakened after the battle earlier, and sped down with full force, sword raised to finish the grounded Lance off –

Only to find his arms and legs suddenly bound by the vines on the trees, Lance's powers of grass finally called into play. More and more vines snaked around Temperance's body, holding him firmly stuck in his position, his sword and elemental powers useless. Razor leaves now spun towards Temperance from the forest, making a new wound with each impact. Blood stained Temperance's clothes, as Lance picked himself up – his trap an unparalleled success – and called off the razor leaves shooting from the forest. Bloody, bruised and beaten, Temperance's mind flashed in and out of consciousness. Despite his efforts, no fire burned the plants away, as Lance came closer and closer to his helpless body.

Dark energy was channelled in Lance's right hand, his left arm still limp, but it would not be needed for this final attack. The dark power would blow a hole straight through Temperance, and even if he had the power of Psychic, such an injury could not be recovered from. Facing death, Temperance closed his eyes, and thought of Lillette, now probably watching in horror. Some part of his mind told him that this could not be – he had been seen unhurt crying over Lillette's body, and he could not die now. But all the evidence was conflicting.

"Good-bye."

Dark energy flew towards Temperance, the maelstrom of power tearing away the binds on his arms and legs. But that was to have no consequence on the outcome – there was no way Temperance could avoid the massive projectile, regardless of his legendary speed. Temperance braced himself for impact, eyes unable to shut, his wide pupils facing impending doom –

Then a flash of yellow flew past Temperance, before it was totally consumed by the dark energy, taking every drop of power Lance had put into that dark blast. Temperance was now free to move, but remained rooted to the spot, mouth open in horror, tears already starting to fall over the slain Zapdos.


	24. Loss

PokeStones of the Dead - Chapter Twenty-Three

The numbness of shock was still coursing through Temperance, the adrenaline of battle replaced with a hollow emptiness. The sound of Zapdos' cry, so encouraging at the Battle of Lavender, now continued reverberating in his ears, even after the dark projectile faded away, leaving behind… nothing. Not a single physical trace of the legendary bird was left behind. All that remained was a spiral of black smoke, curling upwards. The last time Temperance had felt a sense of physical loss was at Vermillion Harbour, where Lillette had informed him of his parents' death to the marching undead. At that time, his emotions had been still frozen, a few words of horror all that could be conveyed to show his loss. Now… as the memories of Zapdos striking the Dead attacking Lavender with lightning flashed through his head, Temperance felt himself sinking to his knees once again. Eyes filled with tears, not noticing Lance recovering from that brutal dark assault, and charging up another projectile, smaller this time, but still enough to rend Temperance's wounds to a bloody death.

Only the sudden intrusion of a dazzling array of beams jolted Temperance back into life. It needed at least 5 or 6 beams from Temperance's and Lillette's Pokemon to deflect the dark projectile away, crashing into the mountain and causing blocks of snow and ice to fall upon the two combatants. Seeing Lillette speed past on Xatu, dodging Lance's angry retaliation water jet, Temperance's feelings of sadness and loss were replaced with one of blind rage. He would not let Lillette die at this madman's hands. He realised that his sword stolen from Lance was still there – it must have been fortified very strongly to withstand that dark attack. Swinging it back into action, Temperance yelled a battle cry, leaping towards Lance with all the speed and strength he could muster. An electric barrier formed around Temperance, protecting his entire body span from projectile attacks. Flames formed on the blade, fuelled by Temperance's red-hot anger. The clash of swords was heard once more – before Temperance simply called upon a lightning bolt from the sky to strike Lance's blade, splintering it into many pieces.

Lance quickly disengaged, sending a barrage of projectiles towards Temperance to an attempt to slow down the assault, but the lightning barrier would not be broken – the level of energy being channelled into it was incredible. Temperance was not even trying to restrain or control his power now – he was just letting loose, letting his hatred and pain direct their movement. Even as a final rock shower from Lance broke his barrier, Temperance was once again close enough for a flame slash, forcing Lance's newly conjured blade back again and again, before enclosing Lance's hand in ice. His left hand limp, right hand frozen, Lance was defenceless against Temperance's slash at his throat – but Lance still had his powers of agility, and a quick turn of his body allowed his cloak to catch the strength of the sword blow. Without even a pause, the cloak fell, and Temperance hurriedly did a follow-up attack in his backswing, but the slight delay had given Lance the time he needed to banish the ice away from his right hand, and the sword was once again there to meet Temperance's blade. It was but a minor respite, however, as Temperance drew off the flames on his blade, before causing a massive explosion between the two combatants. The explosion spewed several fireballs over the battlefield, incinerating Dead and Pokemon alike. Yet Lance was unhurt, holding the remnants of a rock shield in his hand.

Lillette was watching Temperance force Lance into concessions again and again – but she was worried. Temperance was – as unlikely as it sounded – losing himself to emotion. Just 3 days ago, he had been completely devoid of any such thing, and would have scoffed at his own behaviour. Yet there he was, allowing hatred and anger to overtake reason and rational judgment. And if that continued, he would be unable to control his great power, and would fall, like Lance before him, like Mew even further before. Lillette had to stop Temperance from carrying on this mad assault. The fireballs created from that explosion had killed many Pokemon, something that Temperance would never have done in his proper state of mind. It was incredibly dangerous to intervene in such a battle, between two absurdly powerful people, but Lillette decided to risk it. Calling on Xatu, Lillette flew towards Temperance, still slashing at Lance with demonic power, adrenaline and anger providing him with the energy needed to maintain such an assault.

Lance's second sword ended up the same way as the first – shattered into pieces, it fell useless from his hand. Not even bothering to stop Temperance's next move, Lance simply ran away from his adversary, back above the forest that had resulted in the death of Zapdos. Temperance would normally have felt some fear or indecision at going back in range of the hated wood, but once again anger won over reason, and he just flew at full speed in pursuit of the fleeing Lance. Fire shot after fire shot stopped any vines trying to catch his flight, and eventually Temperance grew so annoyed with the damn plants that he just set the entire thing on fire, then resumed his chase. Lance could not sustain flight for long, Temperance knew, and eventually he would have to land, where Temperance would be on him and end his life.

And indeed, Lance's dark power faded, as Lance was forced to land for his customary recharge – but this custom would in this instance be fatal. _At last, victory – and revenge – is mine. _Temperance created three projectiles – resembling a Tri Attack – and added all his power to the beams. The overload of power resulted in many stray bolts and beams spiralling off at random directions, again causing chaos in the battlefield, although the majority of Temperance's power still managed to add to the three projectiles. Lance was desperately trying to escape, but his power failed, and he landed, helpless against the coming attack. Temperance felt the sweet waves of victory wash over his body, and allowed a smirk to form on his face, as he prepared to unleash the beams at his opponent.

"Stop it, Temperance!"

The sound of the voice, so familiar to Temperance, instantly recognisable, sent an electric shock through his brain, disrupting the original signals to its body. Trying both to send destruction down at Lance as well as to stop the attack to hear Lillette, the three projectiles, laden with power, could not be controlled by their creator, and exploded not ten centimetres away from Temperance. Struck by some fraction of the force of his own blow, Temperance fell in an arc away from Lance, blood visible through his shirt. Only in the nick of time did Temperance recover from the force of the attack, stopping himself from landing on his spine, which would surely have ended the battle once and for all. Going into an emergency landing, Temperance managed to land on two feet, with only a wobble or two to show for any lasting non-physical side-effects. He tried to take off again, trying to inflict some injury on Lance while he was still recuperating, but Lillette was on him too fast.

"No, Temperance! You cannot have your attacks directed by anger and unhealthy emotion! Or you'll become like him! You could shut out your emotions effectively a mere 48 hours ago. Continue with it just a little more, it doesn't matter if you can kill him with anger when you'll just become another replica of him. Remember what I told you? Remember? Please!"

_"So, Lillette, why exactly did Lance's good prior intentions become like this? I read the diary entry you showed me, as well as various other ones. He was pure of heart at first, the perfect definition of a tragic hero… but as the diary entries continued, he became more twisted…"_

_Lillette looked at him, and her face was sad. It was a long time, or it seemed to Temperance, before she replied. "Temperance, do you know why Mew was corrupted? The "dark spirit" thing seemed to come out of nowhere, really, but it actually had a source. Mew pushed too hard to create Kanto – far too hard. In fact, its power was not enough to create such a complex entity. But Mew thought that it had to succeed on such a scale. His pride conquered him – and the result was his dark power adding to his strength, allowing him to "succeed". However, it meant that all the living things in the world got a shred of the dark power also – in other words, they would be capable of being exposed to evil. This was the original sin. The sin that Mew was responsible to, and the sin that partially corrupted every human and Pokemon alike – except the three legendary birds, those that Mew had created before Kanto, the guardians that he had already instructed to keep Kanto safe._

"_So, the more power Lance got, the more dark power he also received. For no one in this universe should have the responsibility to handle such immense power. In order to control it for your own ends, your natural "good" power is insufficient, and you have to constantly borrow from your dark side. If you are driven by anger, hatred, pride, envy… etcetera, it gets even worse, as your dark side then comes to the forefront, much like how Mew became Dark Mew all those years ago. So please, Temperance, do not be like that."_

Temperance did recall such a conversation taking place – after his visions, before they had left for Death Peak. But right now, he was feeling only irritation towards the interruption. Even if he would be initially corrupted, wouldn't the destruction of Lance end the need for anger and hatred, allowing him to restore his power to the pure version that he had gained earlier? Why was there a need to stop the attack? Right now his anger was still throbbing in him like some malignant virus, clinging on to his actions and directing his motions, preventing reason and sanity from taking over. So even Lillette asking, no, pleading for him to stop could not banish the devils from his brain. But Temperance might have calmed down sufficiently to refocus his attacks – if not for Lance's action while Temperance was still in thought.

The howl of dragons ripped through the air, catching Temperance by surprise. Wheeling around, Temperance found himself surrounded by dragons, one for each element Lance controlled. With a shake, the rock dragon barraged Temperance with rocks, while razor leafs were shot at Temperance from the grass-typed dragon. Faced with so many different attacks, Temperance saw no alternative other than to run. But Lillette was also in the centre of the maelstrom, and she did not have the power to withstand such an assault, or fight back against it. Temperance carried Lillette and flew out of the circle of dragons, summoning a humongous ice shield on the fly for some temporary respite. Dropping her back in safety, Temperance whispered in Lillette's ear before flying back.

"He dared to attack you… I'll kill him, once and for all!"

"Temperance! No, no –"

Temperance flew off, leaving Lillette on the slopes of Death Peak, uncertain and alone. Should she go back, back into the horrible danger from Lance… and Temperance himself? Or allow them to fight it out, and take the consequences later?

The answer was painfully obvious. Lillette thought of Temperance diving in front of Crobat's attack with a knife, saving her from impalement, realising his feelings for her after the argument at the Elite Four, and hugging her at the Viridian Pokemon Centre. And… she was prepared to die, wasn't she? After Temperance had revealed his visions, she had always thought that she would fall in the battle. So, what was the cause of her indecision? She could not just allow him to self-destruct in his own anger. Calling back Xatu, Lillette prepared to go back to the battle.

Temperance was now having trouble against the dragons. Lillette's intervention had allowed Lance to recharge his power and regroup his tactics. Now, the various dragons were darting around at extremely high speeds, attacking with great precision. Temperance's anger, while powerful, was not carefully controlled or directed – it was wild, boundless, and generally unskilled. The only thing that had allowed him to keep the advantage over Lance previously was his aggression, which had allowed him to direct the pace and tempo of the battle – which in turn favoured his powerful but random attacks. Now Lance was the one controlling the play, cleverly summoning several swift targets so that Temperance couldn't fix his attacks on any one of them, forcing him to use accuracy, precision, strategy – and Temperance simply didn't have any one of those left.

Wildly cutting at the swarm of locusts that made up a dragon shape, only for them to break away and reform, rendering his attack useless, shuddering at the cold that hit his bones as the shadow dragon went through him, numbing his limbs and slowing his attacks, randomly firing beams of ice that the rock dragon blocked with ease – Temperance simply could not get a hit in. And as the dragon made up of poison bubbles charged at him, Temperance was forced to swerve suddenly to avoid it, falling to the ground. And the solid surface beneath his feet suddenly started to buckle and shake – before the ground dragon rose up in front of him and aimed a vicious bite towards his leg.

The pain was excruciating. It felt as if the earth was trying to swallow him up piece by piece, which was indeed something like what was really happening. The dragon's teeth remained clamped on Temperance's leg, and would not let go. A fissure appeared in the earth, and the dragon was moving towards it – soon, Temperance would be between the fissure walls, and they would close, and everything would be over. Temperance tried to break the dragon's hold, sending projectiles into the dragon's body, but they were weak due to his inability to concentrate and the pain he was in, and the dragon shrugged them off like flies, all the while going ever closer to the fissure.

Then a fire blast and ice beam struck the dragon, throwing it off. Temperance glanced above, seeing Moltres and Articuno sending their ranged attacks towards the dragon, halting its advance, but the dragon still would not let go – and even if the dragon could not make any headway, it could still trap Temperance in place for the other dragons or even Lance himself to finish him off. And the pain was still unbearable – if it kept up, Temperance would go into shock –

Then a dazzling array of Hyper Beams lit up the sky, striking the dragon in the head, blowing it clean off. Temperance found that the unworldly force clamping on his leg was gone, and he could extract his leg from the dragon's mouth. Lance's Pokemon, coupled with Gyarados and Flygon, stood together, together recharging after that combined Hyper Beam blast that had saved Temperance for the time being. Lance's eyes widened in shock at the intervention, and Lillette, on Flygon, noticed – could it be? – A tinge of guilt in the eyes. Then it was gone again, replaced by the darkness of Dark Mew. Lillette desperately turned to Temperance – but the rage in his own eyes had not abated, and he was looking eerily similar to Lance. Lillette had to stop this madness before Temperance ended up destroying himself.

Xatu dived down, rushing right past the dragons to Temperance and grabbed him by the sleeves of his shirt. Before Temperance could even shout a word of protest or attack Xatu, Xatu was already flying back to Lillette with Temperance in his claws. Depositing Temperance unceremoniously on Moltres, while Lillette sat on Articuno, Xatu then flew back to the battle with a signal from Lillette. Then, facing Temperance, Lillette began to tell him that his course would lead him to destruction. The last time she had tried it – at Seafoam – it had worked, but now things were a little more… extreme. Temperance was just not listening to whatever she said, as his own inner thoughts drowned out her voice. _He killed Zapdos. He tried to kill Lillette. His army has killed god knows how many free Pokemon – and my parents. I've spent my entire time at Hoenn avoiding and killing his stupid forces. HE BETRAYED ME. AND KANTO._

And the thoughts just repeated and repeated and repeated. The longer it went on, the further Temperance submerged into quagmire. Until he just pushed Lillette away, and flew back to Lance, sword still in hand, and engaged the dragons again. Temperance's Pokemon and Lance's former dragons had kept the dragons at bay, but now Temperance was back to take the brunt of the attack – and once again, he was doing badly against them. Howling with frustration and rage, Temperance repeatedly swung and stabbed, but he was just attacking thin air, and taking hits from the dragons. Then he saw Lance, concentrating on issuing orders to the many dragons, and went straight for him.

Finally, Temperance had a target he could focus on, and in this aspect he enjoyed the advantage. Lance, seeing the assault, quickly recalled his dragons. But the fire barrier surrounded Temperance once again, and Lance's dragons were repelled. Then the shadow dragon went through him again, and this time Temperance's eyes were full of a dark mist – he could only see vague shapes, but Lance was still visible, and his fire barrier was preventing the dragons from approaching. Then two figures rose up in front of Temperance – and a human was sitting on one of them. Lance and another of his dragons, surely! Temperance's sword was quickly imbued with the three elements – with the speed of lightning, and the chill of ice, and the brute force of power, his sword swung back and forth – someone was shouting at him, someone was screaming, but that didn't make any difference – the dragons fell, and then the figure was helpless, alone – and Temperance readied his sword for his final move of the battle – a quick stab to the torso. The fountain of blood that erupted from Lance tasted as sweet as the nectar of the goddesses to Temperance, and the red mist and shadow faded from his eyes, allowing him to see clearly once more.

And he saw the deep slash wounds of his sword on Moltres, Articuno… and Lillette.


	25. The Flaw in the Plan

PokeStones of the Dead - Chapter Twenty-Four

Utter silence.

The chaos of the battlefield had suddenly slowed to a crawl, with nothing registering in Temperance's ears – except the sound of his own agony. And the self-blame, for there was no avoiding it now – everything was his fault, his own bleeding goddamn stupidity and ignorance that had caused this. The rage that had entered him when Zapdos died was completely gone now, as the cold, stabbing knowledge that he had caused double the pain by killing Moltres and Articuno. And that didn't even take into account Lillette –

_Oh my god, Lillette –_

The deep slash wounds on Lillette's arms and chest were so red, so bright, jumping out at him, and he couldn't take his eyes off them, the horrible sight searing his eyeballs, imprinting itself into his mind forever. Everything seemed to be moving in slow motion, and was grey and blurred – except those horrible wounds he had inflicted, clear and bright like a burning star, and that was all he could see. And he realised the horrible truth of his visions, how he had made them come true, with his own hand. How long would he have froze there in a semi-conscious state? He would have just stood there until Lance swung a blade into his back for his ultimate victory, perhaps. But then Lillette raised a hand, and Temperance noticed it instantly, and suddenly the grey, slow-motion picture of his despair went away, as he heard Lillette speak in a weak but clear voice, struggling to hold on to life.

"I forgive you, Temperance."

And there was something about those simple four words that broke the resistance of Temperance, as he just broke down, sobbing uncontrollably over Lillette, kneeling down over her body, letting her blood soak into his clothing, trying to feel her, to remember her, anything that would prolong the memory of her life. But he knew he could not make her live, it was far too late for that. Lillette spoke her last words, managing a smile at Temperance's anger going away.

"Beat Lance, won't you? Not with the power of anger, but the power of your true, undying love. Not love for me – although I wouldn't mind – but love for Kanto. And everyone that Lance has managed to devastate. You can do it. Remember, there is always my love. And I love you, Temperance – I really do."

The hand that Temperance was unconsciously grasping fell, and Lillette's eyes closed. _No! This can't be…_

But it was. Lillette didn't move again, and Temperance had no idea whether she was still alive. If she was, that would change very soon. Temperance controlled his emotions. Lance was no doubt still lurking around, and Temperance knew that he had the responsibility to carry out Lillette's last wishes. Temperance felt the determination come back, but it was strangely… different this time. The determination was not fuelled by anger or a desire for revenge; it was caused by a need to redeem himself in his own eyes, as well as to give Lillette, looking from up there somewhere, cause to cheer about. Never had Temperance felt so clear-minded on what he needed to do, and what he was going to do. The battle had drawn on for long enough.

It was going to end in a single clash. For Temperance, back to his logical analytic self again – at least for the time being – had noticed that Lance had not cast a single spell when his dragons were out. This meant that he had put all his power into them. It was time for the battle to end. With confidence flooding through his body, Temperance made his move.

Temperance unleashed all his power, summoning three huge arrows. Naturally, they were made out of fire, lightning, and ice. He felt totally spent, and he knew that he would be unable to cast any other spells while the arrows were out – the arrows were manifestations of all his power, much like how the dragons were manifestations of Lance's various elements. However, Temperance still had his sword with him. Counting Lance's dragons, Temperance felt that something was wrong – there was one dragon missing. However, he had no time to strike off the dragons, concluding which one was gone via the process of elimination, as Lance recovered from Temperance's prior assault, and gathered his dragons. Knowing that this was the crisis, the climax of the battle, Lance charged at Temperance, his dragons snarling, circling around him, as Lance took a sword from his steel dragon. The speed of the charge was blinding, as Temperance prepared himself for the final clash.

The divine arrows pointed themselves at Lance, as Temperance, sword in hand, stayed marginally behind. As Temperance charged himself, he suddenly realised which dragon was missing, and realised Lance's plan, but he for some reason didn't feel worried at all, even though it was clearly irrational – Lance was now closer, barely 100 metres away, and then Temperance knew why Lance's plan would fail miserably – 50 metres – and Temperance would win, he knew he would win – 30 metres – _For Kanto – _10 metres – _And for Lillette–! _

The clash of steel, and the pain of a bite, then everything went white for an instant –

And when vision returned to normal, Temperance found himself grounded, his leg crumpled and useless. Temperance tried to stand on his one good leg, but the pain was too much, and he soon gave it up for the time being. If Lance wasn't down as well, he was free to kill Temperance in whatever way he chose. But no sword slashed Temperance's throat, no blast of energy hit him in the chest to stop his heart. Eventually, the pain in his leg subsided somewhat, and Temperance stood. A cursory survey of his surroundings revealed that he was still at the top of Death Peak, and Lance lay a few metres to the side. Whatever the extent of the injury Temperance had taken, it was clear that Lance had come off worse in the clash. While Temperance had only sustained injury to the leg, Lance had a slash wound to the stomach, as well as stab wounds to his arms. However, as Temperance approached, Lance was actually smiling, as psychic energy emanated from his fingers. Lance had avoided sending out the psychic dragon so that he could heal himself after the clash. Even though Lance would most certainly come off worse due to having less power than Temperance, he would have the power to heal his injuries while Temperance remained injured, leading to an easy win.

Or so he thought.

As the psychic energy targeted Lance's wounds, they only fizzled and died. The confidence in Lance's eyes turned to shock, as more and more of the pink energy tried to heal his wounds, but kept failing. Shock and blood loss was sending him towards death, and the energy was still floating around, unable to do its job. Temperance finally knew he had won, the sight before him confirming his hypothesis earlier on. Lance could not be healed. And it was time to end this. With all the contempt he could muster, Temperance spoke, allowing Lance to hear the voice of a human for the last time before he paid for his sins.

"Page 10 in the beginners' rulebook, Lance. Psychic attacks and moves don't affect Dark creatures. And I think – considering what you've done – you most certainly are a Dark-typed creature. Now… you are dead. Have fun."

Picking up a sword fragment on the ground, Temperance cut Lance's throat. The Psychic energy, now without a master to control its movement, just moved on autopilot, targeting any wounded people it saw. Temperance, the closest, was the first to benefit, his leg healed in an instant. The energy was wild and abundant, and spread to the battlefield. All those nearing death were healed, and Temperance looked down on the healed soldiers, almost managing a smile despite the death of Lillette – wait. Lillette. _Could she be healed from the psychic energy?_

Temperance ran. Running down the mountain top to Lillette's body, he carried it and ran back to the top. His flying powers – along with everything else – had dissipated, lost in the final clash with Lance. But he still had his legs. He ran faster than he had ever run before. Reaching the top, he laid Lillette's body on the peak, where Lance's body – and the psychic energy – were. As the energy crept towards Lillette's chest, and forced itself into the slash wounds, Temperance felt a sense of hope that he was unused to. Could it possibly work? Could he somehow atone for his idiotic error? More and more of the pink energy crept inside, and soon Temperance could see the wound closing up, the flesh knitting together with the force of a million normal Recover attacks.

Sheer joy and expectation was on his face now, as the slash-shaped marks on Lillette's skin slowly went away, and as Temperance bent over her, not caring about anything else but the pink energy, the dark spirit left Lance and looked for a new host. Who would be the next one filled with wrath? Pride? Envy? The list went on. It had survived all those years ago, and it would survive now. A new host… yes… that was all that was required. It had time. Maybe not now, when the vanquisher had recovered from his fit of anger, but it, after all, did have several thousand years to make its move. Not that the spirit was planning to wait for that long. Soon, soon – as long as someone let his dark emotions grow to huge proportions, the spirit would be back. It was indestructible, there was no reason to fear… as long as sin remained in the world, it would exist.

And as the spirit left Lance's body, it collapsed into dust, the soul that was holding the flesh and bone together suddenly gone. The battle was won – the Dead had disappeared after the spirit controlling them took refuge – once again underground – and the healing psychic energy had saved all those it could save, those whose bodies were not battered beyond recognition. The Gym Leaders rejoiced for that moment, knowing the entire operation was a success. There would be momentary peace, and things would be sorted out in time. In due time.

Lillette opened her eyes.


	26. Epilogue

PokeStones of the Dead - Epilogue

Temperance opened his eyes. Another day. But a special one – he had plans for this day. The chill breeze of air-conditioning was refreshing, waking him up completely. His Poke Balls lay on the dresser, and Temperance quickly dressed, clipping them to his belt. He needed to be ready at all times during challenging hours. While those hadn't started yet, and the chances were low that a trainer would come knocking in the first place, it never hurt to be a little early. And after all, his job was not restricted to defeating other people. Entering his office, Temperance walked the distance to his desk, where he booted up his computer. There were a few daily tasks to do – simple stuff, just observation – before he could start his preparations.

Mail… nothing of note here, just the monthly reports from the Gym Leaders… oh yeah, the search for new Celadon and Vermillion Gym Leaders has begun… and the subsequent rebuilding of the two PokeStones will follow… Yeah, there wasn't really anything new. Temperance attended to some documents that needed his attention, signing over some of them, writing carefully crafted replies for another few, and crumpling them up and throwing them away for others. Eventually, he was done, and the morning had yet to pass. Checking the electronic board at his quarters for a final, just-in-case time, Temperance confirmed that there were no trainers that needed his attention – whether for queries of for battle. Sighing, Temperance strolled through the rest of his quarters, grabbing a drink and a sandwich, then walked towards another destination. It almost seemed like too slack a life after all the action he had experienced since his return to Kanto, but he knew that while a desk job didn't suit his nature, the work was certainly important. And besides, the trainers would come knocking soon enough.

Temperance walked along the corridor, past other rooms, his right hand unconsciously twirling the ring on his left ring finger. He had found it after the battle, glad to have the heirloom back again, even if he had managed fine without it for the latter half of his adventure. Sliding the back door open, leading to a private garden, Temperance walked out, the winter breeze causing some chill, but nothing his fur jacket couldn't handle. Light snow was falling. The trees in the garden were adorned with snow and icicles on the bare branches, and Temperance heard the unmistakable crunch of ice as he walked down the path. The garden was well-maintained, and somehow felt lively even in winter. Except for a single corner, where a few gravestones lay.

Temperance walked over to them, paying his respects to each one, saying a few words of blessing. His parents' bodies had been found – mercifully unspoilt by the rampaging Dead – a few weeks ago, and they had been laid there at Temperance's request. Touching his ring to the stone, Temperance knelt in prayer – not to any specific deity, but rather to his parents' spirits. Then he turned to the next few graves, and said a few words of apology, for his crime, for his madness. Would the three legendary birds forgive him when it was his turn to pass to the afterlife? It was yet early days for such thoughts, and Temperance did not allow himself to get consumed by self-doubt. He did still have a few decades to ask for forgiveness, anyway.

"Temperance, sir. You have a visitor."

Temperance rose from his position, and turned to the butler, who usually would not have been allowed to interrupt Temperance's actions during his lunch hour. "A trainer?" Temperance's first instinct was to think that a trainer had come knocking already, but a quick check on the electronic board above the back door showed that no such thing had taken place.

"No, sir. It's someone who threatened to knock you out if you didn't go back in to grant an audience."

"And rightly I should, Temperance. You haven't forgotten about me, have you?"

"Lillette! You're supposed to be in hospital!" Temperance exclaimed, as he signalled to the butler to excuse himself for a while. Turning towards the door, where Lillette had obviously followed the butler to, Temperance motioned for her to come out, until he realised that she wasn't wearing anything remotely suited for the cold. "Uh… I don't think that's standard attire for the weather."

"Taxi journey from the hospital to here, Temperance. I was discharged early, as you no doubt realise by now, if your reaction times have improved one bit. I never had to go out into the cold." Now, before my arms freeze and fall off, perhaps we should like, go in?"

Temperance led the way, moving through the corridors of Indigo Plateau, before he climbed up a series of spiral staircases to the observatory, where they could see a perfect view of Viridian and the cities beyond. When he reached the top, he pushed open a door onto a balcony, where several comfortable couches were placed. About to sit down on an armchair, he took a glance at Lillette's askance expression and quickly shifted his movement so he landed on the lovers' seat instead.

"So, what's up?"

"Nothing much, completely healed, and I've come to take a look at what the Champion of Kanto was doing. Not very much, from what I saw. Don't you have like, more important work to do?"

"Very funny. If you're not happy with my work, I can always resign and then you won't get a chance to be First Lady."

"First Lady? Is this some sort of joke?"

"Well, assuming no one beats me in battle, and I get re-elected by the Gym Leaders two years from now… And another four years later…"

"Marriage at 22? You presume a lot, Temperance, _sir._ But I think you won't be beaten for a few years at least – trainers are still starting off, and – don't let it get to your head – you ARE a decent Pokemon trainer. As for election…" Lillette motioned over the railing, where trainers could be seen battling wild Pokemon and each other – just like the old days. "I think you'll be re-elected."

Temperance laughed, before drawing his lips close to hers in a kiss. "I'll take that to be a yes."

END


End file.
